These bloody eyes of mine
by kuro-ninpou28
Summary: The sight of those eyes made him lose his words...crimson orbs that replaced his once sapphire blue...these were the eyes that Konoha praised so dearly...the accursed doujutsu that was the cause of his pain. One word left his gaping mouth.…Sharingan.
1. Prologue: Failure

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. **

**This is my first fic so support would be welcomed! **

"Sharingan" -talking

_"Sharingan" - thoughts and Flashbacks_

**"YURI!" -Kyuubi **

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**Prologue: Failure**

"I've failed...everything I've worked for has all been for nothing...I couldn't stop my best friend…I couldn't keep my promise…I couldn't keep my nindo." A blonde teen laid on his bed in his apartment, tears trailing down his whisker marked cheeks. The betrayal of his best friend Uchiha Sasuke hit him hard, but not being able to stop him and keep his promise to Sakura was even harder to bear. Staring at the ceiling of his apartment his mind retold the events that took place right after his unsuccessful return from his mission. His thoughts once again fell on a pink haired kunoichi. The look of disappointment on her face when he came back from the retrieval mission empty handed shattered him.

_Flashback_

_Naruto wakes up to the sights of a white room and a smell of disinfectant, he looks around to find himself a hospital bed, with Shizune looking over him._

_"Shizune...neechan"_

_She looks up and smiles at Naruto stirring from his slumber, rising from her seat she quickly does a check-up, finding everything stable she looks at Naruto and smiles. He gives his own foxy grin back to her, then it quickly fades as memories of the failed retrieval comes back to him, this sudden change didn't go unnoticed by Shizune._

_"Naruto-kun, what's wrong?"_

_"...Sasuke...I've failed him...Sakura-chan...I've failed her..."_

_Shizune was about to say something but was interrupted when a door opened and revealed a kunoichi with pink hair. Haruno Sakura entered the room and laid her eyes on Naruto whose face was downcast. Not wasting time she walks up to him and asks a question that devastates the blonde._

_"Naruto, where's Sasuke-kun?"_

_Naruto doesn't reply, his eyes are covered by his unruly hair hides as not to show the tears ready to fall._

_"Where's Sasuke-kun? Naruto answer me."_

_The said blonde remained silent, his fist clenching his bed sheets and his body shaking. Seeing this cherry blossom kunoichi received her answer._

_"...He's not here...is he?" she choked._

_Hot tears ran down her face._

_"You didn't bring him back did you?"_

_Still Naruto doesn't reply._

_"You...you failed...you failed me...you broke your promise. I can't believe you Naruto! You dobe! You're nothing but a failure!!""_

_Shizune not liking what she heard turns to her and yells "That's enough Sakura!" _

_Naruto turns his head and sees the crying face of Sakura, the look of disappointment and hurt on her facade was killing him._

_"Gomen...Sakura-chan."_

_But she didn't hear any of it as she ran out of the room crying, turning the heads of doctors and nurses as she runs by._

_Shizune casts a worried look at Naruto, but his facade was hidden by his hair. Then suddenly hot tears rolled down his cheeks, his body shaking even more and his knuckles turning white as his fist tightens._

_"Neechan...am I a failure. I am aren't I...nothing but a-"_

_He was interrupted by a slap from Shizune, bringing him out of his sobbing state. The teen rubbed his left cheek and stared at Shizune who began to tear up._

_"Don't you ever say that, don't you dare say that you're a failure, because you're not. You tried your hardest and that's all anyone can ask of you."_

_The medic nin wraps her arms around the blonde cradling him as they cry together._

_End Flashback_

The memory of that day was burned in his memory, it was the first time he's tasted failure, and its bitterness was lingering in his mouth. As he replayed the memory in his head he suddenly felt an emotion that he didn't think he could have against his teammates an emotion only reserved for his enemies...the feeling of anger.

Anger and hatred…all from that one incident.

As he once again played the memory in his mind on the events of the hospital his mind began to work a mile a minute replaying all the details.

It was that incident in the hospital that showed him how foolish he was and his teammates. Sasuke was nothing but a fool out for power and used everything as a stepping stone to achieve his goal of killing Itachi. Sakura was a fool who can only see things at face value, who uses everyone as a stepping stone to achieve her goal of getting Sasuke.

He rose from his bed and entered his bathroom and washed the dried tears from his face. As he stared at the flowing water in his sink he came to a realization. He too, was a fool…a fool that thought that Sakura was his world, a fool that was naïve of his former best friend's motives, a fool for not realizing that he was just being used by the two people of his team, he gave them everything he could give and yet received nothing from them, no praise nor compassion, he was being played a fool by the ones he thought of as two of his precious people.

Precious people…

Sandaime-ojiisan, Tsunade, Jiraiya, Shizune, Kakashi, Team 8, Team 10, Team Gai, the Konohamuru Corps, the Sand Siblings…

They were his precious people, right? They wouldn't hurt him like Sakura and Sasuke did, right?

…They wouldn't…would they?

The blonde couldn't help but give a sad smile as he watched his reflection through the flowing water of his sink. "One betrayal from Sasuke-teme…one betrayal from Sakura…and here I am questioning my loyalty and trusts of others…pitiful."

Clenching his fists as anger sparked once again, he wasn't just angry, he was furious.

Furious at Sasuke for leaving.

Furious at Sakura for her selfishness and narrow mind.

But most importantly he was furious at himself, for his failure and for being naive. Gritting his teeth at his conclusion, he raised his right fist and slammed it at the bathroom mirror shattering it. Bringing his right hand to his face he saw his knuckles bleeding and his fingers trembling.

"Never…"

Red charka begun to mend his wounds.

"…never again…"

The torn flesh was melding together.

"…I will …"

The wounds disappeared and showed flawless flesh as he clenched his right hand to a fist.

"…make sure that this will never happen again, that I will not let any more of my precious people suffer ever again."

Determination could be seen in his face as his "mask of smiles" had begun to crumble. He then stared at his reflection through his shattered mirror and received a shock that would change his life as a ninja.

His reflection was normal but one thing stood out, his eyes. Instead of his cerulean blue his reflection showed crimson eyes, not that of the Kyuubi's…this was different. Instead of slits the eyes had two spinning tomoe marks. The sight of those eyes made him lose his words...these were the eyes that Konoha praised so dearly...the accursed doujutsu that was the cause of his pain. One word left his gaping mouth.

"…Sharingan."

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Naruto was mad, no he was beyond mad, he was pissed. The blonde teen was slumped against the West gate of Konoha waiting for Jiraiya for the training trip he was told by the said pervert that he would be trained under his tutelage for a duration of 2-3 years. Though the mention of training did sound enticing, waiting for the pervert at midnight who was already late by two hours was testing his patience. Not that he had much patience to begin with mind you. Staring at the night sky his mind wandered back to the conversation he had with Kyuubi about the Sharingan.

_Flashback_

_Reeling from his shock upon seeing him having the Sharingan our blonde hero quickly dashes out his bathroom. _

"_Ramen…need ramen…"_

_Quickly heating up a cup of miso ramen Naruto settles himself down on, slurping ramen while his mind tries to make sense of things. Minutes pass, and after finishing his fourth cup of ramen he had begun to settle down._

"_Okay…okay…here I am, Uzumaki Naruto, with the Sharingan…kuso…this doesn't make sense! I'm an Uchiha? I'm related to Sasuke-teme?!"_

_After a good half an hour of rhetorical questions and cursing, the blonde nin relaxes himself...before bursting out in frustration...again._

"_Kuso! Why did this have to be so complicated!" he yelled as he raised his fist to the ceiling. Frustration etching in to him he slams his palms with enough force that _

_broke part of his table. Taking out a good chunk of the said table...which isn't exactly cheap._

"_AHH! Good going Naruto no baka!" slapping himself for his stupidity. That's when he smelled blood, looking at his left palm he notices a cut that was caused by most likely by wooden splinters. Crimson charka emerged once again healing the injury and that's where an idea hit him._

_The Kyuubi…surely he would have answers…right? Having nothing to lose he sits on his bed and loosens himself up before calming his mind into meditation. Feeling himself fall into darkness he opens his eyes. Everything was dark and damp, a sewer like passage laid before him. Naruto looks around, and feels a presence drawing him forward. _

"_Kyuubi…"_

_After walking for minutes he spies a dark prison with a paper in the middle with the kanji for "seal". Before he was able to take another step a powerful voice stopped the _

_blonde in his tracks._

_**"Who enters my domain?" **Kyuubi's voice echoed and rumbled around the area as a silhouette of a giant fox face enters Naruto's view._

_Of course our blonde dynamite being the Number One Suprising Ninja doesn't disappoint us with his reaction, having a good look at the fox before him our idiotic nin says something completely idiotic._

_"Uhh...me duh!"_

_Idiotic indeed, by normal shinobi standards._

_Looking at the fox, Naruto could've sworn he saw the kitsune sweat drop in his cage. Stepping closer to the cage he locks eyes with the fox._

_"Look, I came here to ask a question."_

_**"And would that question be related to the fact that you have the Sharingan?" **the fox retorted._

_"You...you knew?!" being taken aback._

_**"Kit, I'm sealed in YOUR body, I live in YOUR body, I heal YOUR body. So I should be able to know what's going on in YOUR body." **_

_"Then you should be able to tell me why I have the Sharingan!" anxiety clear in his voice. Unconsciously activating the sharingan and locking eyes with the Kyuubi._

_"Why do I have it? Why now of all times? Am I an Uchiha? Am I really related to Sasuke-teme?! Wait if I have it, does it mean I'm related to Itachi-teme too?!"_

_"**SILENCE" **Kyuubi roared, **"If you don't already know having the Sharingan means you are of Uchiha descent. From what I can gather from your DNA it came from your mother."**_

_Hearing the word mother Naruto looses his anxiety and the Sharingan withdraws, quickly he asks in a hopeful tone, "You know my parents?" _

_Seeing the change of emotion the fox gives a quick reply, **"I am not liable to say."**_

_"WHAT?! What do you mean your not liable to say?!" anger clearly seen on him as once again his Sharingan appeared and spinning franticly. _

_Kyuubi taken by surprise of the second sudden appearance of the blazing Sharingan quickly releases a massive pulse of killing intent, Naruto feeling this suddenly drops to his knees but his eyes still retained the Sharingan which was focused on the fox._

_**"Talk to that perverted sennin, he should be able to answer your question. Now go, I'm tired from lending you a good amount of my chakra during your little escapade with that Uchiha. A woman does need her sleep" **That being said, Kyuubi retreats further down to her cage._

_Naruto sweat drops at this, "A woman...sleep...Kyuubi...riiigghhhttt." _

_End Flashback_

"Ero-sennin..." Naruto mused as he stared at the cloudless night sky. After another half hour he spied two figures emerging from the dark streets of Konoha. A blonde woman with large breasts that would make a watermelon jealous and a silver haired man with a helmet that has the kanji for "oil" with the summoning scroll for frogs strapped on his back horizontally. "Che. about time!"

"Maa, maa Naruto" as Jiraiya waves his hands in dismissal, "We would have gotten here sooner if Mune-chan (Breast-chan) here didn't invite me for sake."

A spike in killer intent from Tsunade was all it took to stop the sannin from his spot, his skin considerably paling as he slowly turns his head to the direction of the killing intent.

"JIRAIYA!!" veins clearly pulsing on her forehead as she slowly walks towards him, a dark aura surrounding the blonde hokage.

"Tsunade, calm down, I didn't mean-YAAAAHHH"

Jiraiya suddenly flew to the skies at speeds that would make Gai jealous, his form quickly disappearing from view until all that was left was a twinkle in the sky. Naruto paled at the sight, even with the time he spent with Tsunade watching her titanic strength in action was still a sight to behold. The Godaime then held up five fingers, which confused Naruto until she began a count down.

_Five..._

A small twinkle in the sky reappeared.

_Four…_

The form of a person suddenly came into view.

_Three…_

A girlish shriek could be faintly heard as the silhouette of the sannin became noticeable.

_Two…_

Jiraiya's face was now visible as was the tears coming down his face, and the girlish shrieks became banshee wails and strings of curses.

_One!_

A crash could be heard throughout the streets, surprisingly though the population remained asleep. Dust was coming from a crater from where Jiraiya fell, the sounds of bones crunching emanating from the hole along with groans of pain. Ignoring this Tsunade walks to Naruto who gulped at the sight. Wrapping her arms around the other blonde Tsunade leans to his ears, "I'll be seeing you gaki, don't let this pervert get to you or you'll end up like him, understand?" she says in a sickly sweet voice.

Naruto couldn't help but nod vigorously, although not being drawn to the ways of the pervert while in the company of a SUPER-pervert was a bit tougher than the path to Hokage at the moment. Composing himself for a moment Naruto looks up at Tsunade's worried face.

"Better be ready for me baa-chan, when I return I'll take of your seat of Hokage before you know it!" Naruto gave his foxy grin to Tsunade who smiled in return.

"Alright baka-gaki enough with the goodbyes, let's go!" Jiraiya yelled as he walked out of the crater surprisingly healed and unscathed. Tsunade casts a glare at the sannin that makes him pale once again.

"Jiraiya" Tsunade said in an icy voice, "I warn you just like I did Naruto, turn him into a pervert and I'll ensure that you would never be able reproduce."

Jiraiya was sweating bullets as he felt the temperature in the temperature suddenly drop upon hearing those words. "U-Understood Mune-chan."

The Gama Sennin suddenly grabbed Naruto's right arm and used Shunshin before Tsunade was able to either grab him and tear him apart for his insult or grab him and use him for experimental medical jutsus, either case would've resulted in doom for his reproductive organs.

After two hours of tree hopping they came near the Fire/Wind country border. Jiraiya stops and motions Naruto to a clearing, "We set up camp here, set up the tents while I go for food."

Before Jiraiya could take a step Naruto grabs his right shoulder with a tight grip. "Matte…Ero-sennin…matte."

Seeing the downcast face of the blonde made him worry. "What's wrong Naruto?"

Silence, Naruto stayed there, gripping Jiraiya's shoulder tighter. The sannin wasn't able to comprehend his problem because his face was emotionless and his eyes were covered by his blonde locks.

"Ero-sennin…I want…" his already tight grip became tighter that Jiraiya begun to wince.

"What do you want gaki?" worry and curiosity in the perverts voice. He was met with silence once again but was broken by a gust of wind that blew through the trees as Naruto slowly raises his head to Jiraiya.

"I want…answers." His eyes opened and revealed his two tomoe Sharingan. Jiraiya's eyes widened and his mouth agape. "And I expect it right now." giving a tone of finality.

As Jiraiya looks at Naruto who's Sharingan was blazing, one thought came to the Gama Sennin.

­_'Well shit'_

**(A.N. // Chp. 1 done. Reviews would be nice!)**


	2. 2: Coming forth of a Legend

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

Talking

_Thoughts and Flashbacks_

**Kyuubi talking**

Jutsus are translated at the bottom.

**Chapter 2: Coming forth of a Legend**

It was a mundane, beautiful day at Konoha, birds chirping, not a cloud in the sky, villagers and tourists all smiling and chatting, eruptions coming from the distance by jutsus, and the most notable thing of this wonderful day would be two green blurs having laps outside the village walls while spouting of sentences that all dealt with the 'Flames of Youth'. Yes, it was a normal day, for Konoha standards that is.

A young man in his late teen years was silently walking through the dense forests of Konoha. Lost in his thoughts as he approached his destination. After minutes of walking he saw in the distance the outline of his destination, the West gate of Konohagakure. Feeling a familiar presence near him the teen abruptly stopped and looked to at a high tree branch where the charka signature emanated from. There he saw an older, silver haired man, who stared at him emotionlessly. The two nin's eyes locked together before smiling at each other. The older, silver haired nin was a man in his fifties with a maturity that can range from a wise sage to a hormone raging teen, it was the one and only pervert of the Sannins and beloved author of the infamous Icha Icha series, the Gama Sennin, Jiraiya. The other man was considerably younger, around in his late mid-teen years. Blonde, unruly spiky hair that has grown over the years, especially now that he has bangs that occasionally cover his eyes, even with his Leaf headband holding up the hair, and now also has a small ponytail tied at the back of his head; deep sapphire eyes that one could drown into and three whisker marks on each cheek. All of these traits slapped onto a handsome face of the once known Number One Surprising Ninja, Uzumaki Naruto.

"It's been a while ero-sennin, a year since we've parted ways right? Quite a peaceful year too." the blonde smirked at the sannin's irritated face.

"Che! Kids these days, no respect for their elders." Jiraiya sneered. Then he turned to Naruto and noticed the changes in him and his clothing.

Time has been kind to Naruto, whose fashion sense was significantly better than last he was seen. Ridding himself of his horrendous orange monster of an outfit our blonde teen now sports black shinobi pants that stretches down and hugs at the ankles accompanied by black shinobi sandals. His upper body consists of a dark blue, skin tight, turtleneck, sleeveless shirt (similar to a wife beater/undershirt and turtleneck crossover) showing his well toned body. Black arm bracers that stretches from the wrists and extends near the shoulders, nearly covering his whole arm. Finishing off his out fit was a sapphire blue robe-like cape (Design is similar to Yondaime Hokage's), with a crimson spiral on the center of the back.

"I see you got rid of your outfit that practically said "Kill me! I'm an idiot!" If it was up to me I would have burned those horrendous orange rags you call clothing the first time I met you."

Naruto couldn't help but scratch the back of his head and grin in embarrassment. After a moment he became serious, "So how did Tsunade-obaachan take the news of us splitting up last year."

"At first she threatened to neuter me along with other horrendous threats that can permanently damage a man." Both men winced at the possibilities, of course since this was Tsunade they were talking about, so it became a really long list of outcomes.

"It couldn't be helped, Akatsuki had been unnaturally active and you had your duties and I had my training. Though it's not like I was alone during the training I had apart from you, Hiro-sensei had me train under the acquaintances you knew that resided in different countries as well as himself and friend of his in Kiri. Plus it was good to experience relying on oneself than always having others watch your back, and we did keep touch via Gamakichi."

"That's true, but it still took countless explanations and assurances of your safety along with a week in a hospital bed **AND** your letters saying your okay that she began listening to reason." Jiraiya unconsciously rubbed his behind, _'And what a week it was in that hospital. Damn! I didn't know charka scalpels could be used that way!'_

Ignoring the grunting noises of the Sannin, Naruto looked at the large gates of Konoha. Nostalgia seeping into him, he couldn't help but smile at the sight. _'Like they say, Home is where the heart is'_

"Three years…it's been a while, ne Sensei?" Naruto looked at the older man who stopped rubbing his posterior and suddenly had a mischievous smile on his face.

"Heh wait 'til we get inside gaki, I swear you'll be glomped by fangirls faster than Gai can run a lap around Konoha even with his Eight Gates!" Jiraiya stated as a bit of drool came down his face. _'I'll have enough inspiration for two volumes with that! Icha Icha Harem, that doesn't sound too bad!' _

"Feh! As if Gai could catch me while I'm using Hiraishin." Naruto retorted. His grueling three year training trip has paid off extremely well. With his skilled use in Kage Bunshin, (due to its special side effect of giving information acquired by each clone to the original via being dispelled) and his acquired Sharingan, he was able to speed up his learning process by leaps and bounds. Jiraiya seeing his pupil's fast development wasted no time in training him in high class jutsus, especially the Hiraishin, the legendary technique of the Kiiroi Senko. After a six months of training the Sannin noticed that the blonde would-be-Hokage's immense growth on ninjutsu and theorized that he too would be able to have potential to exceed in the other shinobi aspects. When six more months passed Jiraiya's predictions were correct as Naruto easily picked up the basics and intermediate teachings of taijutsu and genjutsu. After discovering this, the Gama Sennin decided to train him in every aspect, from ninjutu, to taijutsu, to genjutsu and to kenjutsu.

Naruto is now extremely competent in taijutsu combining Gai's Goken (Strong fist?) and his unnaturally high affinity for wind elemental he was able to make a somewhat hybrid taijutsu style he dubbed "Kaze no Goken". His style consists of the normal Goken but with the help of his wind affinity empowering each strike his attacks are quicker and causes wind damage that either cuts or pierces during a punch or kick. The winds accompanied by each blow are deadly enough to cut the skin even if the strike misses by at most a maximum of one foot from the target.

Now for genjutsu, which used to be the department that Naruto lacked, was now no longer a problem with his fully matured Sharingan, which the blonde was grateful for his Kekkai Genkai for he thought that learning the ways of genjutsu the normal way was too…troublesome.

Though his achievements didn't stop there, not only did Naruto exceed in ninjutsu and taijutsu and well versed in genjutsu, but he has now also developed his kenjutsu. How? Well it started when during his trip the duo leaf nins came upon Sunagakure in which Jiraiya said was the perfect place to hone his Fuuton jutsus, and is also where Naruto and the Sand Siblings met once again.

It was during this time that Naruto informed Jiraiya of Gaara's problem with the Ichibi and asked if he could help reinforce the seal, of course Gaara not used to generosity was stunned by this. Being a seal master Jiraiya was able to complete the imperfect seal allowing Gaara to gain control of Shukaku and have peace of mind. His siblings and sensei were grateful to them for that, especially Gaara but they didn't know because he slept for a week straight.

But were getting out of track here, now about how he came to kenjutsu. As thanks for helping their brother/student/future Kazekage the sand nins were more than happy to assist Naruto with fuuton. Under the tutelage of selected jounins was when the blonde leaf nin saw Baki, the former jounin sensei of the Sand trio showed Naruto the fuuton jutsu, Kaze no Yaiba. This jutsu creates a blade of wind that is used as a point black to mid-range attack that is also impossible to block due to its intangible nature and unlike Fuuton: Kamaitachi, this jutsu needs no tools or fans. An ideal assassination technique that's quick, silent, and could fatally wound if not kill an enemy. After seeing the performance and the capabilities of Kaze no Yaiba, Naruto begun to think of a way to turn the wind blades into one corporeal blade of wind that he could wield.

_Flashback_

"_Kaze no Yaiba!" _

_A gust of wind suddenly picked up and disappeared as quickly as it came. There were splinters of wood on the place where a wooden training post used to reside. Naruto looked at the remains of the post, picking up a few wooden chunks he saw the smooth cuts caused by the jutsu. 'Such flawless cuts in the space of a second…the Kaze no Yaiba huh? Very nice jutsu indeed.'_

_The blonde looked at the half masked jounin who had a look of pride at the result of his jutsu. "Sugoi…Oi! Baki! Don't want to impose on you but can you teach me that jutsu of yours. Judging by the speed and power I'd say it was roughly around an A-Rank jutsu, a very cool one at that. So…uh think you can teach me 'cause I need some good fuuton jutsus in my repertoire." Naruto scratched the back of his head while giving a foxy grin._

_Baki first stared at the blonde then smiled, "Kid, for what you did for Gaara I'd be happy to. Now listen up! I'm not very good at repeating things so I'll only say this once. The Kaze no Yaiba requires charka to manipulate the atmosphere around you in a 5 foot radius and..."_

_End Flashback_

Through repeated usage of Kaze no Yaiba accompanied with hundreds of Sharingan blazing clones he was successful of creating a sword that he could wield. By using charka as a container, much like the Rasengan, and by filling the container by charka empowered wind that continuously circulates at rapid speeds inside of the charka container the blonde was able to achieve his goal. The technique became known as 'Kaze no Rasenyaiba' (Spiral blade of Wind) due to its likeliness of the Rasengan and originating from Baki's 'Kaze no Yaiba'. However, the said jutsu currently has a drawback; the amount of concentration needed for the manipulation of the technique far exceeded what it took for Rasengan (which takes a considerable amount by itself). Concentrating on the sword and on battle was taxing and in a real fight it could cost him his life.

Confronting Jiraiya with his problem the Sannin told him to stick with a katana for the time being and practice the Kaze no Rasenyaiba with his clones for battle simulations that would improve concentration on multiple tasks at once.

After spending two months in Suna the duo left for Kiri. The Gama Sennin then told Naruto of an acquaintance of his that was once a member of the Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shu (damn long title) and was an expert in kenjutsu. Quickly excited at the prospect of being able use a blade Naruto wasted no time dragging the pervert to Kiri, much to the Sannin's irritation. Arriving at the village after five days of travel the two booked a hotel room and started their search. It took four hours to find their target and their meeting was…interesting for Naruto, to say the least.

_Flashback…again._

_Slowly walking through the crowded streets of Kiri the two leaf nins were casually taking in the sights while attempting their search. Their eyes gazing left and right trying to find a glimpse of their target._

"_Ero-sennin, who're we trying to find again? You only gave me a general description…long hair, dark brown eyes, thin and approximately 5ft. 9inches in height." the blonde asked for the umpteenth time during their search. Finding a man whom he had never met and was only given vague description of wasn't easy, even for shinobi._

_Jiraiya sighed in annoyance, "Gaki, just stick with me, I'll point him out to you when we spot him."_

_Sighing from their fruitless search Naruto hangs his head down. Because of his inattentiveness the blonde accidentally knocks down a passerby._

"_Ouch!"_

"_Oops, sorry ma'am my fault." the blonde nin smiles and embarrassment and offers his hand to the fallen lady. Looking at the woman Naruto couldn't help but blush, with long jet black hair, chocolate brown eyes and a slender figure, all wrapped in a blue kimono, she was a definitely one of the better looking women that he saw during his travels. _

"_It's no problem young man." the lady smiles at him making the leaf nin blushed a darker shade of red. The woman seeing this couldn't help but giggle at the sight._

"_Ahh! Hiro is that you?!" the two look at direction of the voice. They saw Jiraiya walking towards them, a smile on his face. _

"_Been a while hasn't it Hiro?" the Sannin shaking his hand._

"_Sure has Jiraiya, I see you haven't changed." the woman/man said while returning a grin to the Sannin._

_Naruto looked at the two and couldn't help but be confused. Jiraiya seeing his students dilemma says, "Naruto! Allow me to introduce my friend. His name is Hiro Murakama, a former member of the Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shu and the one who we've been looking for." _

"_Ahh. So this is Uzumaki Naruto, the one you told me about in your messages. It's good to meet you Naruto-kun" the kiri nin said while keeping his smile on and now directed at the blonde._

_Naruto's mind took its time as it worked on the new information he was given. If one were to listen carefully you could hear the sound of gears running in motion. Though while the blonde's mind was comprehending the words of the Sannin his mouth had decided to blurt out something different._

"_He…did you say 'he', you mean to tell me this hot chick is a GUY!" he yelled. 'Oh Kami-sama, it's another 'Haku', is every good looking kunoichi in Kiri male too?!'_

_Hiro turned red from anger and embarrassment at the comment while Jiraiya snickered at his friend's predicament. Patting Hiro on the back the Sannin said, "It's not your fault Hiro, it's your genes that fuel your female disposition that's the problem."_

_The Kiri nin glared at Jiraiya, "Yeah that sure puts a lot off my chest. Do you know how out of control its gotten. I've been groped by males Jiraiya! GROPPED BY MALES! You know how wrong that feels!!"_

_Jiraiya's snickers turned into full blown laughter as he clutched his sides and leaned on a nearby wall. At this time Naruto could be seen at the nearest garbage can emptying the contents of his stomach. A thought ran through his mind._

'_Damn the bishounen!!'_

_End Flashback _

After a week of recovering from vomiting sprees and Hyoton burns, the latter received by Jiraiya, Naruto came under the teachings of the former Kiri nin. Through Hiro the leaf nin expanded his Suiton jutsus and learned a decent amount of Hyoton. It was under the said nin that Naruto learned the basics aspects of kenjutsu and later on moved to intermediate. Like Jiraiya, Hiro noticed the genin's fast paced growth even without the Sharingan, Naruto absorbed all his teachings like a sponge like it was second nature. As three weeks passed the sennin received word from his spies on the sudden activity of Akatsuki.

_Last Flashback for this chapter! I promise dattebayo!_

_Jiraiya walked into a clearing, looking around he could see pieces of melting ice and soaked dirt littered around. Walking in the middle he searched for our blonde hero and his Kiri nin friend. Deciding to walk further in the Sannin continued to look but stopped as he heard a voice._

"_Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu!"_

_Looking to his left he spotted an oncoming torrent of water in the form of a dragon heading his way. Time seemed to slow as he realized his current situation._

'_Oh…Shit'_

_His hands automatically began a set of seals and slammed his palms to the ground._

"_Doton: Doryuheki!"_

_A giant slab of dirt and rock sprung out of the ground, enforced with charka it solidified into a protective wall._

_The dragon missile slammed to the wall turning the dirt to mud. When the suiton attack ended the wall begun to fall apart as chakra was no longer holding it together. The Sannin looked at his attacker and scowled. Naruto saw the scowl and smiled in embarrassment._

"_Gomen ero-sennin, didn't see you there." as the genin scratched the back of his head._

"_I swear gaki, you're going to be the end of me one day." the sennin sneered._

_Jiraiya walked towards Naruto, his face now serious. The blonde saw this and decided to listen to what he has to say, because even though Jiraiya is a hentai, he's still a Sannin, and when Sannins are serious it usually means dire business. _

"_Naruto, Akatsuki seems to have been active lately. My spies have recently sent me a message on their current movements. I need to look into this, we were supposed to have at least another year and two months before they would start to mobilize again. I've talked to Hiro on continuing your training, I also gave him a list of friends and contacts that can help."_

_Naruto stared at the Sannin before nodding in understanding. "So were going to separate for the remainder of the three years huh?"_

_Jiraiya grimly nodded, "There's no other way, you need to continue your training and I need to check on the situation with Akatsuki."_

_The blonde genin put a reassuring hand on the Sannin's shoulder, "Don't worry I understand, you have your duties as a Konoha nin and a Sannin. I'll be fine with Hiro-sensei around."_

_The Gama Sennin smiled at his student, 'He truly has come along way.' "Alright gaki I'll see you in Konoha in a year and two months!" he turns and walks out of the field but before he exits he was stopped by Naruto's voice._

"_Remember, you get to tell baa-chan about this predicament. Well ja ne ero-senning!" Naruto waved as he Shunshined out of sight. _

_Jiraiya left the training grounds cursing his luck with anime tears rolling down his eyes._

_End Flashback_

Time flew by during their separation, Naruto continued his training under different senseis while Jiraiya continued his information gathering before returning to Konoha two months earlier than Naruto. Deciding that leaving the blonde to his own was for the best at the moment the sennin decided to stay and wait for his student while enduring the occasional beat down from his former teammate, Tsuande.

Naruto looked towards the gate, 'Heh wonder how pissed baa-chan is right now.', the nin was cut from his musings by Jiraiya's voice.

"Oi! Gaki! Come on Tsunade's been waiting three years for you." the Sannin said who was now a few meters ahead of the blonde.

He Shunshined next to the Sannin and the two started to head to Konoha's West gate. Naruto stopped before the entrance of the village, staring at the Hokage monument he grinned.

"I'm home."

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**Jutsus:**

**Kaze no Yaiba (Blade of Wind)**

**Kaze no Rasenyaiba (Spiral Blade of Wind)**

**Hyoton (Ice release)**

**Suiton: Suiryudan no jutsu (Water Release: Water Dragon Missile)**

**Doton: Doryuheki (Earth Release: Earth Style Wall)**

**(A/N: Chp 2 done, got to thank some people for some ideas given to me, helped me a lot. Please Review!)**


	3. 3: Sensei and student

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

Talking

_Thoughts and Flashbacks_

**KYUUBI talking**

**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**Chapter 3: Sensei and student**

It was another typical afternoon for Tsunade, paperwork overflowing her desk obscuring her from view. Even with working and signing at speeds that befit a Kage the stacks never seem to dwindle down. Shizune looking over her own stack of papers looked to her master and felt pity for her plight. After all paperwork is the only enemy that strikes fear to any Kage. Ten minutes of continuous signing and cursing the blonde Godaime abruptly stops. Reaching into her cabinet she pulls out a measuring tape.

"Let's see, 32in. for this one, 30in. for the other one and 45in. for-GAAHH!"

"Tsunade-sama!" the brunette medic nin quickly appeared at her side.

"Shizune! It's grown! This stack used to be only 39inches! Now it's a freaking 45in!" Tsunade yells while pointing to the accursed pile.

Shizune surveys the area before seeing the problem. "Tsunade-sama, where do you put the papers that you signed?"

"I stacked it right here…Oh!" pointing to the 45in. pile of papers.

The brunette giggled at the sight of Tsunade turning red from embarrassment for her moment of stupidity. Huffing indignantly she pulls out a bottle of sake from her drawer, taking one big swig she downs the bottle in mere seconds. Slamming the bottle down to the garbage she runs her fingers through her hair and sighs.

"I swear I'm gonna strangle that brat for making me Hokage." she says while rubbing her stiff neck. Before Shizune could reply the door opened revealing the Chuunin Kotetsu.

"Tsunade-sama! Tsunade-sama are you here?" he yells while looking around the room for the blonde Hokage.

"Here I am drowning in paperwork, literally." raising her hand above the towers of paper that obscured her from Kotetsu's view.

Sweat dropping at the sight momentarily he composes himself. Walking nearer to the pile of papers before stopping in the middle of the room. "Tsunade-sama, there's a leaf nin here waiting for you, claiming to be the Rokudaime."

Tsunade quickly rose above the paperwork, "Is it….him?"

The Chuunin smiled at the Hokage's restrained excitement, knowing the sibling relationship that the two blondes have, "Hai. He's returned."

"Quick! Send him in!"

Kotetsu disappears in a puff of smoke leaving the two medic nins in the room. Shizune smiles at the news of the blonde genin's return and looks to Tsunade who was restraining herself from pouncing through the door.

"Well Tsunade-sama, it seems you get your chance to strangle him after all." the medic nin chuckled again at Tsunade's embarrassment. A minute passed, suddenly two pairs of footsteps could be heard outside the door. The doorknob slowly turned and the door slowly opened, revealing Jiraiya, who walked in with smile on his face. The Gama Sennin stepped aside and leaned on a corner of the Hokage's office. As the door was about to close a palm reached out and stopped it. A tall blonde teen walked in, taking a few steps inside he reached the center of the room. Naruto and Tsunade locked in a stare; silence filled the room until it was broken by the genin. "I see you're doing well, Tsunade-sama" giving her a small, gentle smile.

Moments passed until Tsunade disappeared from sight and engulfed Naruto in tight hug. Tears began to form in her eyes, "Two years with Jiraiya and another year be yourself, a total of three years that you had me worried brat." she said affectionately.

'_Is she saying that I'm a bad influence?'_ Jiraiya's eyebrows twitched at the remark but refused to break the moment the two had.

Breaking the hug with Tsunade, Naruto was immediately trapped in another with Shizune. "I miss you too, Shizune-neechan." After a minute of affection she released her grip and examines Naruto further. Glancing from head to toe she notices that his body has matured, now with a handsome façade and his change in clothing added more to his now increased appeal.

"Neechan, you're drooling." Naruto said flatly. The brunette quickly came out of her stupor and blushed in embarrassment. Turning her head away from the blonde she notices Jiraiya scribbling in a notepad. Righteous fury rising within her as she stalks towards the preoccupied pervert, chakra scalpels activated. But before she could do any damage she was stopped by Naruto's voice.

"Now with the pleasantries over with I suggest we get to business." he said in an emotionless tone.

The two medic nins were surprised in this uncharacteristic behavior that was unlike the Naruto they knew three years ago. Ignoring their stares he continues, "During my three years absence, two of them spent with Jiraiya-sensei and the last one being spent with different senseis, all of whom are acquaintances with Jiraiya, one would think a few things would've changed around here."

Taking a breath of air Naruto continues, "I would like to know what has gone on and in Konoha. Also I'd like to know the current activity of Akatsuki and Orochimaru, surely you would be privy to this information, Hokage-sama? I'd ask Jiraiya but might as well ask you since you've already received his reports."

The two medic nins continued to stare blankly at Naruto, eyes blinking every ten seconds. Even Jiraiya was a bit stunned at the display of maturity from his student.

'_How much have you changed, Naruto?' _Jiraiya thought while the other two nins thought at similar lines.

"What?" irritation at Naruto's voice at the unsettling looks he was given by the occupants of the room.

Dismissing the rare show maturity from her surrogate brother Tsunade returns to her desk before setting her gaze at him again. "For starters Konoha has been a bit quiet ever since your leave…" Naruto scratches the back of his head, "…and most of your friends have become Chuunin, the Konohamaru corps also joined the ranks and are currently genin."

"Wait, most of my friends?" confusion in his voice.

"Yes, Hyuuga Neji and Aburame Shino have both become rookie Jounin, quite a feat if you ask me." Hearing this Naruto couldn't help but smile at his friends' achievements, Tsunade cleared her throat before continuing on. "But as for the information on Akatsuki and Otogakure…I'm sorry Naruto but that information is only given to those of elite Chuunin and Jounins. Don't ask Jiraiya either because I've specifically asked him not to spill information unless its an emergency."

Silence ensued as Naruto's heart sank, but a voice broke the silence, this time by Jiraiya.

"But there is a way he could obtain the information legally, am I right Tsuande-hime?" a glint could be seen in his eyes.

Tsunade sporting a similar look, "Yes, there is a way that he can get them along with other benefits."

Shizune and Naruto looked at the two in confusion, Tsunade rummaged through one of her cabinets and pulled out a form. "Naruto, do you know how a ninja moves up in ranks without taking official exams?"

Though still confused at the current situation he decides to answer, "Yes there are three ways. The first is when ninjas perform well in missions that are one or two ranks above them. The second is during war time where it is necessary at times to move ninjas into higher ranks. The last is when a ninja is tested by a high ranking nin, specifically Jounin or ANBU while in the presence of other Jounins for an unbiased result. Though I still don't see what this has to do with….." Naruto stopped himself as realization hit him.

Jiraiya and Tsunade sported smirks, and Shizune casts a smile now understanding the situation. The blonde Godaime then handed a form to Naruto who quickly studied the paper. "Jounin registration?"

"Jiraiya has informed me that you were more than capable of handling the rank of Jounin by the time the two of you parted ways a year ago. I think that testing you for this rank is more suitable then putting you in for Chuunin, unless…" Tsunade left her sentence hanging.

"Putting me in for Chuunin would be an understatement to my abilities baa-chan." his lips forming a confident smirk.

"Well then gaki go to Training field 7, you're Jounin proctors should be arriving there shortly, I'll be there as well as Jiraiya, were curious to see your progress." she said in glee.

Putting the paper in one of his many pockets Naruto leaves the room in a whirl of leaves. Shizune looks at her mentor, a bit of worry on her face, "Are you sure this is wise Tsunade-sama?"

Jiraiya puts a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry, I've seen his growth the time he was training under me, have confidence in him, because I do." Opening one of the windows in the room, "I'll see you at the training grounds Tsunade." Jumping through the window.

Rummaging through her drawers once more Tsunade pulled another sake bottle and downing it in two gulps. Throwing it in the garbage she leans back on her chair looking at the Hokage monument. "This is going to be a long day." she sighed.

Training field 7-----

"Training field 7 huh?" gazing upon the area of his old training grounds he felt nostalgic, walking deeper into the field he spots three wooden posts embedded in the ground. Resting his hand one the middle post, memories of his happier times with Team 7 filled his mind. Sitting down and leaning on the post Naruto stares up at the sky, engulfed in calm.

As ten minutes pass the blonde senses eight familiar chakra signatures, _'About time, I think Kakashi-sensei's tardiness has been rubbing off on the shinobi populace while I was gone.'_ Chuckling at the times his former sensei was usually late on team meetings.

Eight nins entered the field all are either Jounin or higher rank, Kakashi, Gai, Kurenai, Asuma, Genma, Shizune, and the two Sannins. As they entered the field they noticed that it was vacant. "You sure you told him the right training grounds Tsuande-sama?" Kurenai asked at the bewildered Hokage.

"Yes, I told him to go to Training field 7. He should've already been here by now, unless of course he started a habit of being chronically late." glaring at Kakashi who's eyebrow was twitching.

'_I'm losing my dignity aren't I?' _the copy nin mused while his Jounin companions were chuckling at his expense.

"That hurts baa-chan, do you really have so little faith in me?" a voice shot throughout the surrounding trees.

A gust of wind blew through the field blowing blades of grass and leaves, the winds then receded and Naruto stood in front of the gathered nins, arms crossed and a smirk on his façade. The group of elite nins stared at the blonde, more so than others.

'_I didn't sense his presence at all. Interesting.'_ Jiraiya felt proud of his student while the others had thoughts similar to his.

The Jounin-senseis gazed upon the former orange wearing blonde along with the Genma, the proctor for the third part of the Chuunin exams.

"N-Naruto? Is that you Naruto?!" Kakashi gasped as he studied his former student.

"Do you know any other male nin in Konoha that has spiky blonde hair, whisker marks on each cheek and a well toned body?" the blonde joked.

Kurenai stared on, a faint blush on her face as she took in Naruto's new appearance in full detail. Naruto senses her gaze and shifts his eyes to her, "Kurenai-sensei, you're drooling." he deadpanned.

The red eyed kunoichi blushed and fidgeted in embarrassment, the group of Jounins laughed at her situation. "YOSH! IT SEEMS THAT NARUTO-KUN'S FLAMES OF YOUTH HAS GROWN AND IS NOW RAISING IT HIGHER BY HITTING ON OLDER WOMEN!!" Gai yelled while doing his signature pose, white teeth sparkling and an unbreakable genjutsu of a sunset in the background.

'_Some things never change I guess'_ Naruto sweat dropped at the sight.

"I didn't know that you were the one that we needed to proctor for this. Jounin rank huh? Heh…things have changed over the years hasn't it Naruto?" Asuma said as he received a nod from Naruto. Genma continued to watch on and received a wave from the blonde which he returned.

Kakashi was still stunned at the appearance of his student, _'He's grown…Naruto.'_ Naruto's voice took him out of his stupor.

"So Tsunade-sama, who would be the one testing me for this test?" looking at the female blonde. A mischievous glint came in Tsunade's eyes as she stepped forward.

"Uzumaki Naruto, in this tests you will be judged by five Jounins and two Sannins to see if you have the capabilities and properties suitable for Jounin, and in this test your opponent is…Hatake Kakashi."

Naruto's eyes widened before nodding, walking in the opposite direction of the group he stops when he was 30ft. away. Tsunade, Jiraiya, Shizune and the four other Jounins stepped away and rested on the spot where the three training posts were located. Kakashi's eyes locked with Naruto's before smiling, "It's been a while Naruto, I see you've changed quite a bit…definitely changed, I wouldn't be surprised if you became the next eye candy for the kunoichi populace in the village." erupting in perverted giggles at the end.

"And I see you haven't change much sensei, still a late, closet-pervert I see." the blonde heartily replied. Both opponents shared a good laugh before stopping, once again they began to analyze their opponent.

Silence ensued, but was quickly broken by another familiar voice, "GAI-SENSEI!"

The two Sannins and the five Jounins who were gathered at the posts stared, while Naruto and Kakashi ignored, at an oncoming green blur that was holding a figure, three other blurs were dashing not too far behind. The green blur landed in a whirl of leaves revealing Lee, who now looked like a Gai-minime, with Neji being lifted by Lee's right arm.

"GAI-SENSEI!"

"YES LEE?!"

"NEJI HAS PERFORMED SOMETHING UNYOUTHFUL!"

"WHAT IS IT MY BEAUTIFUL LEE?"

"HE USED HIS BYAKUGAN TO LOOK THROUGH TEN-TEN'S CLOTHES!!"

"WHAAT! IS THIS TRUE NEJI?!!"

"He's lying!!" the Hyuuga prodigy yelled, "I was practicing my proficiency with the Byakugan when Ten-ten came up and talked to me."

"LIAR! THEN HOW COME YOU STILL HAD IT ON AND WAS STARING AT HER CHESTS?!!" the Gai clone yelled indignantly.

"Because I felt your presence behind her and used the Byakugan to see through her only to see you crouching down!" Neji retorted, "What were you doing anyway?"

"I WAS BEATING MY RECORD ON SQUATTING!!"

"While staring at Ten-ten's ass?" the pale eyed Jounin then saw a volley of kunais aimed at him and Lee. Both nins jumped to the side avoiding the projectiles. Ten-ten came into view along with Sakura and Shikamaru.

"Will you two stop talking about that?!" Ten-ten spat in an icy tone as she slowly walked to her two teammates who were hiding behind Gai, fearful of the righteous anger of their female teammate.

"Tsunade-sama! Sorry for the interruption but we couldn't stop Lee from entering the grounds." Sakura came over with Shikamaru lazily walking behind her. Tsunade raised her hand signaling the two to stop in their tracks. Looking over to the still bickering Team Gai she clears her throat gaining their attention.

"Team Gai, Sakura and Shikamaru, we are in the middle of proctoring the ascension of a ninja to the Jounin ranks. You guys may watch as well seeing as you're here now but don't disturb the process."

"So who's the one being tested?" Shikamaru asks as he sits himself down near Asuma. Asuma looked at his student before complying.

"A good friend of yours." the chain smoker replied while lighting a cigarette which was quickly extinguished by Shizune, much to his irritation.

"A good friend of mine? Who…" Shikamaru was but off by Genma who pointed in the direction of Kakashi and Naruto. The members of Team Gai and Sakura also looked in the direction finding two people that were staring at each other.

Sakura looked at Kakashi's opponent, _'Let's see, blonde hair, blue eyes, whisker marks, a hot body…Wait! Is that…!' _But before she could say anything she was beat by Lee.

"NARUTO-KUN HAS RETURNED!"

Neji and Shikamaru stared on in shock at their friend's drastic change in appearance while Ten-ten had sparkles in her eyes.

'_That's Naruto?! DAMN!' _the weapon mistress mused.

"Enough!" the group of young nins were cut from their thoughts by Tsuande who continued, "Hatake Kakashi, Uzumaki Naruto the match for Jounin rank will now commence. Begin!"

Kakashi quickly raised his headband, revealing his spinning Sharingan. Naruto looked in surprise before smiling. "Not going to read your book this time sense?"

"Nope, something tells me I'm going to have to go all out in this…don't disappoint me Naruto."

For awhile neither of the two competitors moved from their spots, Naruto was the first to act. Reaching into his pouch he threw a volley of shuriken at the silver haired Jounin. Kakashi ducked the volley and countered it with his own. The blonde jumped dodging the attack but was met with another volley of projectiles.

Putting his hand to a seal he shouts, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Four clones appeared at his side. Two of the clones grabbed a hold of Naruto and another clone and chucked them higher to the sky. The two said bunshins were then dispelled being impaled by kunais.

The remaining clone took a hold of Naruto's arm and swung him at Kakashi's direction before dispelling. Naruto charged in at Kakashi, Rasengan in hand. The gap between the two nins was quickly closing, Naruto was now within 5 feet of the silver haired nin. Before he was able to connect the attack, Kakashi took a hold of Naruto's right wrist and slammed him into the ground dispelling his Rasengan and pitted a kunai to his neck.

"Good tactic, but not good enough Naruto." the Jounin stated.

Naruto sported a smirk which didn't go unnoticed by Kakashi and the onlookers, "Bunshin Daibakuha."

Kakashi's eyes widened and quickly took off his hold but before he could move out to a safe distance 'Naruto' exploded leveling the surrounding trees. The force of the blow threw Kakashi into the air, with a quick flip he lands safely to the ground but didn't remain unscathed. Parts of his clothes were singed and the explosion knocked out the air in his lungs. Composing himself the silver haired Jounin took a defensive stance, glancing around for signs of his blonde attacker. Sensing a presence behind him Kakashi, quickly ducks barely avoiding a kick to the head. Using Shunshin, Kakashi reappeared 17ft. away.

Naruto took the standard Gouken stance, which surprised Kakashi and the onlookers, excluding the two Sannins.

"Sensei…" Kakashi looked at Naruto while taking his own stance.

"…Shinobi Tactical Knowledge # 1: Taijutsu."

'_Well this is an interesting wrinkle.'_ Tsunade smiled at the awkward situation Kakashi was in.

The two stared at each other once again, "Shall we dance, sensei?"

The blonde smirked, Kakashi's Sharingan glowed, the challenge was accepted and the two disappeared in a whirl of leaves.

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**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Technique)**

**Bunshin Daibakuha (Great Clone Explosion)**

**Gouken (Strong Fist)**

**(A/N: Chapter 3 finally done, phew. Reviews are welcomed.)**


	4. 4: Results of Training

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

"Talking"

_'Thoughts'_

**Talking in Unison**

**(A/N: All jutsus in this chapter are translated at the bottom, and trust me, there's quite a bit of jutsus in this chapter. Naruto is also not 'super powerful', he's stronger than Kakashi but not up to par with the Sannins yet.)**

**----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**Chapter 4: Results of Training**

Fallen trees and numerous craters that were littered around the area was the only indication that a taijutsu battle is in progress. The sounds of steel clashing, body parts thumping with each hit, and the blurs that were appearing only to disappear were all that could be seen and heard.

Two figures came into view in the center of the field, both somewhat winded due to their battle. On one side was the Copy Ninja Kakashi in a defensive stance, his body sporting cuts and parts of his clothing torn. Naruto was on the other side, also in a stance. His body has a few cuts from kunais but his wounds weren't as bad as Kakashi's.

'_His taijutsu style is Gouken, that much I know. What I don't know is how he keeps inflicting damage on me even when I dodge and block. How do-!!'_

Kakashi was cut from his thoughts as Naruto charged straight at him. The Jounin set himself to counter the attack. Naruto disappears from sight and reappeared above Kakashi, preparing a drop kick. Kakashi sidestepped to the right avoiding the kick by an inch, but that was enough, as a cut appeared on his left arm.

'_Again!'_ Frustration seeped into him as he jumped back a few meters from Naruto, _'Calm down Hatake and analyze your opponent. Look for things out of the ordinary.'_

Composing himself, Kakashi, with his Sharingan eye, studied Naruto as the blonde set himself at a stance once again. Focusing his eyes he saw layers of thin chakra lines circulating throughout Naruto's arms and legs at great speeds. _'I see, wind manipulation huh? The way he controls it is similar to Asuma's Hien, that's how he's able to cut me even if he misses. But there has to be a range of how far the winds extend.'_

Using shunshin, Naruto teleported a foot away from Kakashi, his arm about to deliver a punch to his chest.

'_I guess I'll find out through trial and error.'_ Kakashi mused as he dodged the blow by bending his body to the right, avoiding the strike by 11 inches. A small cut appeared on his Jounin vest but didn't draw blood. _'I see.'_

Quickly twisting his body, the copy nin delivers a kick to Naruto's abdomen, sending the blonde a good 15 feet back. The genin skidded on the ground before coming to a halt, taking a breath of air he set himself for another attack. _'Seems sensei figured out the trick to my attacks. But it takes more than that to counter my style.'_ The blonde inwardly smirks as he sets his eyes on Kakashi.

"So Kakashi's figured out the force behind Naruto's attacks." Jiraiya thought out loud.

"You mean how Kakashi keeps getting wounded even if he blocks or dodge?" Kurenai asked and the rest of the onlookers looked to Jiraiya hoping for answers as well. Each of them, Jiraiya excluded, were awed at how Kakashi was barely keeping up with Naruto during their still on going taijutsu bout.

"Yes, to put it simply Naruto's style is a combination of Gai's Gouken and Asuma's Hien." The Sannin stopped there, letting the information sink into them.

Tsunade and Asuma's eyes widened as two words left the smokers mouth, "Wind manipulation…"

Everyone's head turned towards him, excluding the Sannins who just nodded. Looking at the curious eyes egging him to continue the chain smoker sighed, "If what Jiraiya-sama says is true then he's combining Gai's taijutsu style with wind manipulation. He's using wind based chakra to have an extension in his arms and legs that cuts the opponent even if the user misses. It's the same thing I do with my trench knives when I use Hien."

All of them were stunned at his explanation, even Shikamaru had his eyes intensely focused on his sensei. Neji quickly recovered from his shock and activated his Byakugan and stared at Naruto.

"I see it, layers of chakra lines coursing through the lower arms and legs." The Hyuuga stated.

Genma took out the senbon from his mouth and stared at the two fighters, "If Naruto's using that type of taijutsu then Kakashi's in for more than he bargained for." Everyone nodded in agreement.

"**LET YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH BURN BRIGHTLY NARUTO-KUN!!" **Gai and Lee yelled in unison, much to the displeasure of everyone near them.

Naruto charged at Kakashi once again at a great speed. Blurring out of existence, the blonde reappears under Kakashi preparing a kick. "Konoha Senpu!"

The blonde sends a powerful upward kick towards the silver haired Jounin's chin, but the moment he made contact his foot demolished a log instead. _'Kawarimi'_

Kakashi shunshined behind Naruto, preparing a backhand blow to the side of the blonde's head. Sensing an upcoming attack the blonde ducks in time as a fist brushes through his hair. Naruto counters by doing a roundhouse kick that connects with the Jounin's ribs, but once again he was met with a log. _'So he's countering my style through Kawarimi. Clever, as expected from sensei.'_

The one eyed Sharingan user hid himself in the trees while looking at his student. His mind was going through numerous strategies figuring out better ways to counter. Using his hands he rubbed his temples and sighed, "This is going to be awhile."

"Tell me about it." a voice behind him said. Kakashi's eyes widened as he turned around.

Standing on the same branch was Naruto, who was smiling at him sweetly…too sweetly. "Had a nice break? Good, let's continue then shall we?"

Kakashi inwardly groaned as the blonde disappeared in a whirl of leaves. A thought ran through his mind as Kakashi sensed a figure directly behind him.

'_Son of a…'_

A loud explosion caught the attention of the audience in the fight, looking at the direction of the fallen trees and dust they say a figure come out of the smoke and into the clearing. The figure turned out to be Kakashi who was slightly more wounded than the last time they saw him before he used kawarimi.

The copy nin didn't have time to relax as a volley of shuriken emerged from the dwindling smoke. Unleashing his own projectiles, the silver haired Jounin deflected each of them.

Using his keen senses and Sharingan eye he quickly spots Naruto's position within the forest trees and threw kunais tied with explosive notes. The blonde dodged all six kunais, as each of them impaled the tree he saw the notes tied to them.

'_Shit!'_

Naruto jumped off the tree and landed a few meters away from his sensei, the tree that he was on a second ago soon exploded.

'_He forced me out of hiding. Kuso, I got to make a distraction.'_

The blonde looked at Kakashi's calculating eyes and smirked, "Sensei, Shinobi Tactical Knowledge # 2: Genjutsu."

Kakashi's eyes widened as Naruto began to go through a set of seals at a pace that he could barely keep up with, even with his Sharingan. The genin stopped and the last seal, "Ninpou: Kokuangyou no Jutsu."

Darkness surrounded the copy nin, obscuring everything from view. Using his Sharingan he quickly dispelled the genjutsu. When everything came into view again he found Naruto to be nowhere in sight.

A voice rang throughout the trees catching his attention, "Shinobi Tactical Knowledge # 3: Ninjutsu."

Two sources of chakra flared, Kakashi looked up to see two Narutos fifty feet in the sky, both of them going through the same seals.

"**Katon: Housenka no Jutsu!"** both cried out in unison.

Fireballs began to rain down on the Jounin who was hard pressed on dodging the multiple balls of flame.

'_What are you planning Naruto?'_

Dodging the last fireball Kakashi looks around the empty field trying to find his student, a voice emanated once again, this time from behind.

"Suiton: Bakusui Shoha!"

A massive amount of water gushed out and covered a large portion of the training ground, flooding the area by at least a foot of water.

"What's he doing?" Ten-ten asked her peers and the Jounins, all of which were sitting on branches of trees due to the water.

Shikamaru looked at her and back to the fight before answering, "He's setting up the field for Suiton jutsus."

"Yeah but the water also gives Kakashi the privilege to use Suiton as well." Shizune chipped in.

"Let's just see how things play out." Tsunade stated with finality, everyone else silently agreed.

Naruto and Kakashi both stood on the water fifty feet away from each other. Suddenly chunks of water started to rise slowly, each formed into a human figure before becoming a copy of Naruto.

"Mizu Bunshin"

There were about a hundred of them surrounding Kakashi from all angles. Ten clones charged at him, quickly pulling out two kunais (one on each hand) Kakashi sliced three of them with one swing. Dodging the attack from another clone before dispelling it with a stab. The remaining clones attacked together in a circle that surrounded the copy nin, Kakashi spun himself as if performing Kaiten, using the kunais to slice the oncoming clones, destroying all of them.

The Jounin looked around the clones that infested area, all of them ready to charge at him. _'There's too many of them, I guess I'll have to use **that** technique. Good thing I've been working on increasing my chakra reserves lately.'_

The white haired nin set his arms in an 'X' shape as he gathered chakra. "How about I turn it up a notch. What do you say, Naruto?"

Before a response could be heard Kakashi's hands discharged a massive amount of chakra, his hands now both covered in lightning.

"Raikiri Nirentotsu!"

Naruto looks at him, mouth slightly opened. Kakashi sees this and smiles, "You're not the only one learning new tricks during the years."

The blonde composes himself and smirks, "Let's see what you can do sensei. Let's go!"

His remaining clones advanced towards Kakashi who was thwarting each of them with relative ease. Naruto watched as his sensei slaughtered his clone army, Raikiris blazing with life as it tore through each clone. Forming a seal he cries out, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."

A clone appeared beside him and nodded at the mental command he was given and disappeared into the rapidly decreasing platoon of clones. As Kakashi was finishing off the last twenty clones Naruto began sealing.

Swinging his Raikiri empowered palm at the last clone the Jounin caught his breath. But his victory over the Mizu bunshins was short lived as Naruto cried out, "Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu!"

The water near Naruto erupted, forming the shape of a dragon that charged at Kakashi. Using his left hand he met the oncoming attack with one of his Raikiri, both forces cancelled each other out.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu!"

The copy nin turned around and saw another water dragon, with his remaining Raikiri he thrusts it towards the torrent. Both attacks once again cancelled each other. Kakashi looked to where the attack originated and only saw a small layer of smoke that was dissipating and frowned.

'_Kage Bunshin'_

Moving his gaze to Naruto, Kakashi went through his own set of seals, "Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!"

A massive spiraling blast of water sped towards the blonde.

'_Kuso!'_

His hands automatically sprang into action. "Suiton: Suijinheki!"

The water around Naruto shot up creating a barrier, both jutsus then collided in a giant blast of water. The surrounding area was soaked from the clashing techniques and drops of water rained down. As the temporary rain of water stopped both fighters could be seen struggling against each other, kunais in hand.

Kakashi's right hand gripped his kunai tightly as Naruto's own kunai pressed against his. The blonde looked at his sensei before smirking, "I got you."

Using his free hand, Naruto pointed his palm to Kakashi's midsection, "Fuuton: Daitoppa!"

Kakashi felt a powerful explosion of wind knock him back with the force of a boulder. The gushing winds slammed him into a tree, imprinting his figure onto its trunk. Slowly raising himself up the copy nin shook himself of his dizziness before his mind tried to made sense of what just happened.

'_No seals at all! It seems his affinity for wind is higher than I thought! This is going to get tricky.'_

"GAI-SENSEI! WHAT JUST HAPPENED!!"

"WELL LEE IT SEEMS NARUTO-KUN BLEW KAKASHI AWAY BY HIS FLAMES OF YOUTH!!"

"GAI-SENSEI!!"

"LEE!"

Student and sensei once again hugged each other with excess passion, sickening the others around them.

"Is his affinity really that high? I mean to be able to do fuuton without seals, is that possible?" Sakura asked her mentor.

Tsunade nodded in reply, "Yes it's possible to control an element to an extent if you have the affinity for it. Gaara and his sand is a perfect example."

The Jounins and Chuunins accepted the explanation but the two Sannins shared a thought, _'Still, using no seals at all for a jutsu that originally requires it. I can't even do that!'_

Coming out of his daze Kakashi ran through seals again, "Suiton: Suishoha!"

A large body of water came to life and sprang towards Naruto who was eyeing the attack. He narrowed his eyes at the water before countering, "Hyouton: Kokuryubo Fusetsu!"

An icy black dragon with red eyes shot from the blonde's arms and into the rushing tidal wave. As the two attacks met the water began to freeze as the ice dragon continued to pierce through the attack. A large dome of ice now stood on where the two attacks confronted each other.

Kakashi shunshined atop the dome and locked eyes with Naruto.

'_So he knows Hyouton too. You've grown well Naruto.'_

His Sharingan eye began to spin as his hands went through a familiar set of seals.

"Hyouton: Kokuryubo Fusetsu!"

Naruto's eyes widened as he saw his own attack copied and now charging at him. _'Should have seen this coming, he's not known as the Copy Ninja for nothing.'_

"Katon: Karyu Endan!"

A jet of flame in the form of dragon shot out of the genin's mouth. The two dragons, one of ice and the other of fire clashed head on. Fire melting ice, and ice extinguishing fire, both attacks soon dissipated into nothingness.

Kakashi jumped down to the still flooded grounds and landed ten meters away from Naruto. The copy nin looked at his student with his blazing Sharingan eye. "Let's see what you got Naruto."

The blonde smiled at his sensei, "Fuuton: Atsugai"

A massive gust of wind flew towards Kakashi, splitting the water as it reaches its target. "Suiton: Daibaku no Jutsu!"

A large vortex of water sprang up and cancelled the oncoming jutsu at the last second. Kakashi then sensed chakra behind him and ducked as two bullets of water flew past him at high speed. Turning around he spies Naruto and slams his hands down onto the surface of the water, "Doton: Doryudan!"

A large dragon head made of mud appeared next to Kakashi. The dragon opened its mouth and launched mud balls at Naruto. The blonde dodged the first volley of mud projectiles, another one came right after it followed by another.

'_Need to take that dragon out.'_

After dodging another volley he set his sights on the mud dragon with Kakashi nowhere in sight. _'I'll worry about that later.'_

"Hyouton: Haryu Moko!"

A large tiger of ice charged at the mud dragon, freezing the water it traveled on. Both jutsus crashed onto each other leaving only frozen earth and water as an end result. Naruto then looked around, his sensei was nowhere in sight. Suddenly the water below him began to rumble and splash around violently.

"Suiton: Daibakure no Jutsu!"

The blonde's eyes widened, _'Shit!'_

A maelstrom formed below him and started to drag him down. Enforcing his feet with extra chakra, Naruto tried to escape but to no avail. _'No choice.'_

Stopping his struggle his body started to sink down at a faster rate, Kakashi questioningly stared at Naruto from a tree branch. _'What are you doing?'_

His question was answered as Naruto's hands rested on a seal before crying out, "Fuuton: Tatsu no Oshigoto!"

A tornado formed from the sky and reached down to the maelstrom of water. The force of their collision shook the grounds as heavy winds and gallons of water whipped about. Kakashi and the other Jounins, Sannins and Chuunins enforced their feet with chakra, sticking onto the trees as heavy winds threatened to blow them away.

The winds started to die out, Kakashi stared at the field. A huge crater formed in the field drawing in the water that flooded the grounds, forming a small lake. He saw Naruto on a tree branch, his clothes soaked but other than a few new cuts he was fine. Suddenly the air behind him began to feel hot, turning around Kakashi saw an oncoming fireball headed towards him.

"Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu!"

The copy nin quickly jumped off the tree and back onto the now muddy field. He quickly spotted two 'Narutos' standing on the 'lake', both of them sealing.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu!"

"Katon: Karyu Endan!"

A dragon of water and another one of flame shot out and headed towards Kakashi, both forces combined in a tight helix.

"Ninpou: Dairyu Endan!"

Kakashi gawked at the combination attack, shaking his head he jumped to the right by ten feet avoiding the attack. The stream of fire and water streaked through the forest, destroying everything in its way before bending itself backwards and headed once again at the copy nin.

Kakashi's eyes widened before he shunshined away from the attack, reappearing on top of a tree branch. Once again the attack redirected itself towards the Jounin and came upon him at a faster speed.

Kakashi quickly slammed his palms to the ground, _'Doton: Dochu Eigyo no Jutsu!'_

At the same moment that he slapped the ground the attack crashed down on him, resulting in a giant explosion which left a twenty foot crater.

Naruto stuck onto a nearby tree staring at the damage. As the smoke cleared he found no remains of his sensei. _'So he escaped below. I need to flush him out.'_

Stretching out his right hand he began to form a Rasengan. The blue orb of chakra rested on his palm, _'More chakra.'_

Pumping in more power the ball of rotating chakra started to grow in size and its color went from light blue to a dark shade of indigo. _'This should do it.'_

Jumping off the tree he descended with a powered up Rasengan in hand, upon the crater that Kakashi was formerly on before he disappeared.

"Odama Rasengan!!"

The attack deepened the already existing crater and ruptured the surrounding grounds causing chunks of land to spring forth. Kakashi emerged from one of the rocks that sprung up due to the attack, his eyes the size of dinner plates.

"W-What the hell?"

'_Jiraiya-sama, I understand Naruto learning taijutsu and ninjutsu at an advanced level but that technique took the cake!!'_

Naruto spotted Kakashi staring at him with glazed eyes. "Sensei…", catching Kakashi's attention, "…I've found you."

The Jounin and his student locked eyes, after a moment passed both of them ran through seals.

"Katon: Zukokku!"

"Doton: Doryuheki!"

"Raiton: Rairyu Endan!"

"Hyouton: Haryu Moko!"

"Hyouton: Tsubame Fubuki!"

"Kunai Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

"Suiton: Teppodama!"

"Katon: Housenka no Jutsu!"

"Suiton: Hahonryu!"

"Suiton: Suikodan no Jutsu!"

"Raiton: Gian!"

"Suiton: Kaihodan!"

The onlookers stared at the jutsus flying about, their heads turning left and right as each jutsu was announced.

"Looks like Kakashi's chakra reserves have gained quite a bit." Jiraiya stated as Naruto spewed out a 'Katon: Karyu Endan' at Kakashi who countered.

"Yeah, hard to believe, being as lazy as Shikamaru and all." Asuma replied as he lit a cigarette which was extinguished quickly by splash of water by one of Kakashi's suiton jutsus.

Shikamaru glared at his cancer smoking sensei before sighing, "Troublesome."

"Knowing Naruto this may take awhile." Neji thought out loud as his Byakugan kept an eye on the two battling nins.

"No…" Jiraiya said, catching everyone's attention, "…increased reserved Kakashi may have, he's going to run out before Naruto in this battle of attrition. I bet you that he's planning to end this soon."

"**Raiton: Rairyu no Tatsumaki!!"** both sensei and student cried out in unison.

Two tornadoes of lightning confronted each other, battling for dominance but to no avail as both disappated in a stalemate. Kakashi and Naruto stood sixty feet from each other, their surroundings charred, crushed and soaked from their jutsu battle. Both nins were breathing for a bit of air, Kakashi more than Naruto.

'_Almost out of chakra, I need to end this now.'_ the copy nin mused while looking at his student who was fairing better than he was.

"Naruto, let's raise the stakes. One last charge, winner take all."

The blonde genin smirked, "Show me what you got sensei!"

Kakashi set his right arm pointing down while his left hand held his right wrist. _'Better be ready for the chakra depletion I'm going t get after this battle.'_

"Sonona no Yuri Raikiri!"

An enormous discharge of chakra, larger than the one before, emerged from Kakashi's right hand as lightning wrapped around it once again. This time the lightning was significantly stronger as nearby grass dried and the ground below the copy nin became scorched. The color of the lightning seemed almost purple in color instead of its normal blue. Naruto looked in wonder at his sensei and his jutsu.

"This is my first and true Raikiri." Kakashi stated answering the questioning look on his students face.

"SO MY ETERNAL RIVAL HAS PULLED OUT HIS ACE!!" Gai shouted in glee.

All of them were now sitting near the three training posts again since the ground has dried due to Naruto and Kakashi's raiton and katon jutsus.

"The true Raikiri…I've never seen it." Kurenai mused.

"Well that makes most of us." Shizune replied as Asuma, Genma, Sakura, Shikamaru and Team Gai nodded.

"Been awhile since I've seen him use that." Tsunade said as she turned to her teammate.

"Yeah, the last time he's done it was in the Third Great Shinobi War." Jiraiya mused.

Tsunade moved closer to the Gama Sennin and whispered, "Seems he's not using his doujutsu."

"I don't think he wants to reveal it yet. Most likely to avoid the multitude of questions and problems he may get later on." he replied.

"That or he's saving it as a last resort." the Slug Sannin stated.

Naruto stared curiously at the jutsu that Kakashi had in hand, _'Should I use the Sharingan and intercept or use Odama Rasengan again. I don't want to show my kekkai genkai yet, and using Odama Rasengan against his powered up Raikiri is going to have consequences on both of us. What to do…Wait! I can use **that **technique!'_

Extending his right arm out with his palms open he started to gather chakra. Kakashi and the onlookers, excluding Jiraiya, stared in awe as a sword of wind formed in Naruto's hands.

"Kaze no Rasenyaiba."

The white haired Jounin focused on Naruto who was preparing to strike. Kakashi charged at him, Raikiri tearing and scorching the ground below. The blonde reached into his pouch and gripped a three tipped kunai and flung it at Kakashi with immense force. The Jounin, seeing an incoming projectile aimed at his head quickly tilted his head while continuing to advance, the kunai flew past him and stuck itself into a tree a foot behind Kakashi.

Naruto quickly charged right in front of Kakashi the moment he dodged the three pronged kunai. His Kaze no Rasenyaiba clashed with Kakashi's Raikiri causing sparks of lightning fly and gusts of winds blow through the trees. For a minute the two attacks seemed to be in a stalemate, but soon Naruto's sword began to lose its form.

Seeing this Kakashi looked at his student who showed no emotion, "This struggle is useless Naruto, my Raikiri is dominating your jutsu."

Naruto smirked at his sensei, "Whoever said that I was going to overpower your Raikiri?"

Kakashi's eyes widened as Naruto disappeared in a flash of yellow and blue. Before the Jounin can comprehend the situation a blade of wind was pitted near his neck.

Naruto stood behind him, Kaze no Rasenyaiba pitted to Kakashi's neck on one hand, and the three pronged kunai he threw earlier in the other.

"Kiiroi Senko no Jutsu: Hiraishin no Jutsu."

'_This technique, how?!'_ Kakashi then spotted the three pronged kunai and remembered the projectile he dodged earlier upon charging at Naruto.

'_I see, excellent tactic, you've surpassed me already, Naruto.'_

"It seems I won, ne sensei?" Naruto stated as he deactivated his jutsu, Kakashi did the same with his Raikiri and looked at his student.

"Yes you have Naruto, yes you have." Kakashi's eyes formed and upside down 'U' shape, indicating him smiling. The two looked at each other before both erupted in a bit of laughter.

Tsunade's voice caught the two nins attention, "The winner of this exhibition is Uzumaki Naruto!"

Tsunade and Jiraiya, along with everyone else began to walk towards Kakashi and Naruto. The blonde genin sat himself down onto a fallen log and stared at the clouds.

"I need some ramen."

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**(A/N: That's all for chapter 4. Reviews are welcome)**

**Jutsu list:**

**Hien (Flying Swallow)**

**Shunshin (Body Flicker)**

**Konoha Senpu (Leaf Whirlwind)**

**Ninpou: Kokuangyou no jutsu (Ninja Arts: Bringer of Darkness Technique)**

**Katon: Housenka no jutsu (Fire Release: Immortal Pheonix Fire Technique)**

**Suiton: Bakusui Shoha (Water Release: Exploding Water Shockwave)**

**Mizu Bunshin (Water Clone)**

**Raikiri Nirentotsu (Twin Lightning Blade)**

**Kage Bunshin no jutsu (Shadow Clone Technique)**

**Suiton: Suiryudan no jutsu (Water Release: Water Dragon Blast)**

**Suiton: Daibakufu no jutsu (Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique)**

**Suiton: Suijinheki (Water Release: Water Encampment Wall)**

**Fuuton: Daitoppa (Wind Release: Great Breakthrough)**

**Suiton: Suishoha (Water Release: Water Shockwave)**

**Hyouton: Kokuryubo Fusetsu (Ice Release: Black Dragon Outburst Snowstorm)**

**Katon: Karyu Endan (Fire Release: Fire Dragon Missile)**

**Fuuton: Atsugai (Wind Release: Pressure Damage)**

**Suiton: Daibaku no Jutsu (Water Release: Great Explosion Technique)**

**Doton: Doryudan (Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet)**

**Hyouton: Haryu Moko (Ice Release: Piercing Dragon Fierce Tiger)**

**Suiton: Daibakure no Jutsu (Water Release: Daibakure no Jutsu)**

**Fuuton: Tatsu no Oshigoto (Wind Release: Severing Pressure)**

**Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)**

**Ninpou: Dairyu Endan (Ninja Arts: Great Dragon Missile)**

**Doton: Dochu Eigyo no Jutsu (Earth Release: Underground Projection Fish Technique)**

**Rasengan (Spiral Sphere)**

**Odama Rasengan (Great Ball Spiral Sphere)**

**Katon: Zukokku (Fire Release: Intense Pain)**

**Doton: Doryuheki (Earth Release: Earth Style Wall)**

**Raiton: Rairyu Endan (Lightning Release: Lightning Dragon Missile)**

**Hyouton: Tsubame Fubuki (Ice Release: Swallow Snow Storm)**

**Kage Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu (Kunai Shadow Clone Technique)**

**Suiton: Teppodama (Water Release: Gunshot)**

**Suiton: Hahonryu (Water Style: Rapid Crasher)**

**Suiton: Suikodan no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Shark Missile Technique)**

**Raiton: Gian (Lightning Release: False Darkness)**

**Suiton: Kaihodan (Water Release: Kaihodan)**

**Raiton: Rairyu no Tatsumaki (Lightning Release: Lightning Dragon Tornado)**

**Sonona no Yuri Raikiri (The Original Lightning Blade)**

**Kaze no Rasenyaiba (Spiral Blade of Wind)**

**Kiiroi Senko no Jutsu: Hiraishin no Jutsu (Yellow Flash Technique: Flying Thunder God Technique) **

**(A/N: That's a lot of jutsus there, well spring break over here and I'm enjoying my time. Once again, reviews are welcome!)**


	5. 5: Ranks and Duties

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

"Yo" -normal talking

_'Yo'_ -thoughts

**"Yo" - bijuu thoughts**

(**A/N:** Well this is the longest chapter I've written so I hope you guys enjoy.)

(**A/N: Yes there will be a pairing!! So everyone who asked here is your answer!!)**

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**Chapter 5: Ranks and Duties**

Naruto sighed as he leaned on a branch of a tree that was trashed down with his fight against Kakashi. Looking at the oncoming crowd consisting of his friends and acquaintances he couldn't help but think that promoting to Jounin would result in being drowned by work. After he saw Kakashi fill out a report after the mission from Wave, which consisted of an inch worth of paper, he wasn't quite sure if he wanted that much workload on him.

"Things are going to get so…troublesome." He sighed once again.

"Hm? Well if I hadn't fought you myself I would've thought you became lazy during your training trip with that statement of yours. We already have a 'Shikamaru', we definitely don't need another." Kakashi said while flipping a page in his perverted orange book, Icha Icha Idol.

"It's not that I'm being lazy, it's just that…never mind. Oh hey! I got a present for you sensei!", the blonde said while reaching into his shuriken pouch. "You're definitely going to like this…knowing you."

The white haired nin raised his head out of his book and looked at his student, his one visible eyebrow arced in interest. _'What does he mean by that?'_

"Where the hell are you? Ah! Here it is, behold Kakashi-sensei! The newest edition to the Icha Icha series! Icha Icha Late Nights!" Naruto held out an orange book, its letters of Icha Icha glowing in gold.

The group of Chuunins, Jounins and Sannins, who were only a few meters at the time overheard this interesting piece of information, causing the kunoichis to quickly glare at Jiraiya, a malicious aura rolling off them in waves. The silver haired Sannin gulped and unconsciously took a step back away. "Jiraiya, tell me…", the Slug Sannin cracked her knuckles, "…what the hell did _you_ do to him!!"

"Wait Tsunade I can explain!" the Gama Sennin frantically said while sweating bullets at his slowly approaching former teammate.

"**You turned him into a pervert!!"** the kunoichis cried out in unison, soon a chakra enhanced fist met Jiraiya's face and sent him flying towards Kakashi, who dodged his body by stepping towards Naruto.

"Naruto…how? When? Can I?" the Sharingan Jounin asked while ignoring the cursing he was hearing from Jiraiya's direction.

"Well Ero-sennin gave it to me about a year and a half ago, telling me it's a good way to kill time while recuperating from training. At first I was hesitant but there was one day when I was training on Suiton and kenjutsu with Kage Bunshins for a day and a half straight that I quickly wiped out my reserves and had to rest the most of the next day because of severe chakra exhaustion."

Naruto paused, taking a breath and looked at Kakashi, who was eagerly listening. He also spied the others trying to hear their conversation, but ignored them.

"Anyway, during the time I was resting he gave me the book telling me that I had nothing better to do. At first I didn't even want the book to exist, but lying down all day got really boring. So I decided to listen to him that _one_ time and opened up the pages of that smut for literature."

"Hey! Those books are a work of art!" shouted Jiraiya who's body couldn't be seen due to the rubble that he was buried in, but the tiny shaking of the fallen trees that piled on top of him proved that he was still alive…for now.

The blonde genin glared at the direction of his Sannin sensei, annoyed at being interrupted. By now Tsunade and the others have gathered around both Naruto and Kakashi, all of whom listening to the conversation. Though the kunoichis seemed to be twitching and casting glares to where Jiraiya is.

"Moving on, you can say that after recovering from massive blood loss due to nosebleeds I actually found the book quite interesting. I can see why you like Icha Icha, not a bad read when you get past the smut."

"Ha! So the gaki has finally seen the light that is Icha Icha, I couldn't be more proud of my student." the Gama Sennin finally dragged himself out of the rubble shaking off the dirt from his clothes. But he was interrupted by multiple kunais, dozens of poison needles, a painful genjutsu (featuring yaoi), and two super-powered fists that sent him spiraling down to the ground again.

Each of the male shinobis casts sympathetic looks at Jiraiya and felt a bit of fear from their female comrades, all whom surrounded the perverted Sannin's fallen body with evil glares.

Kakashi quickly looked back at the book his student was holding out. "C-Can I?"

Naruto looked at his sensei with a foxy grin, "Well I did say I have a present for you didn't I?"

Upon hearing that answer the Jounin grabbed the book and held the blond in a tight embrace. "Naruto, I want to tell you that I always loved being your sensei."

The others sweat dropped at this display, "YOSH! KAKASHI HAS FINALLY ACCEPTED THE FLAMES OF YOUTH!!" Gai shouted enthusiastically. Lee was about to join in but was stopped when Kakashi sent a 'I-will-castrate-you!' look to the spandex wearing duo.

Taking her eyes off her former teammate and to the other males, Tsunade, deciding to punish Jiraiya later and focus on the task at hand, cleared her throat catching everyone's attention. "Now then let's get to business."

The group of nins settled down and set their eyes on their Hokage. "You, Asuma, Kurenai, Gai, Genma and Kakashi, have seen Naruto's performance today. What is your opinion on his ranking?"

Naruto adopted an emotionless face and looked at the Jounins. Shikamaru, Sakura, Shizune, and Team Gai also stared in silence as they were awaiting the verdict.

Asuma was the first to speak, "I, Asuma Sarutobi, a proctor of this match, accept Uzumaki Naruto to the Jounin ranks."

Kurenai followed, "I, Yuuhi Kurenai, the second proctor accept Uzumaki Naruto to our ranks."

"I, THE BEAUTIFUL BEAST OF KONOHA, MAITO GAI, THE MOST YOUTHFUL OF PROCTORS, ACCEPT NARUTO-KUN TO JOIN US!!" Gai shouted, doing his infamous nice guy pose, his teeth sparkling unnaturally, blinding his comrades.

'_Leave it to Gai-sensei to brighten things up.'_ Naruto mused.

'_It's moments like these that I wish I didn't have the Byakugan'_ Neji groaned at his sensei's display.

Taking out the senbon from his mouth Genma came next, "I, Shiranui Genma, another proctor, accept Uzumaki Naruto to the ranks."

All eyes turned to Kakashi, who was giggling at his newly acquired book. The Jounin felt a spike of killer intent and looked up from his read to see Tsunade glaring at him with a 'I-will-burn-that-piece-of-crap-literature' look. Needless to say Kakashi quickly put away his precious book to the safe confines of his shuriken pouch. Clearing his throat his face became serious before replying, "I, Hatake Kakashi, the examiner, accept my student, Uzumaki Naruto to the ranks."

"Are these final?" Tsunade cautiously asked.

The Jounins remained quiet, silently answering her question. The blonde Hokage looks at Naruto whose face was emotionless but his eyes were taking in the whole situation.

"Well then, Naruto…" the blonde genin looked to Tsunade who had a smile on her façade, "...congratulations, as of now you are a Jounin of Konoha, be proud of your accomplishment."

The group cheered at Naruto's success while he himself was grinning widely at his promotion.

"YOSH! NARUTO-KUN'S YOUTH HAS SURPASSED MINE! I MUST NOW TRAIN HARDER TO BECOME AS YOUTHFUL!!" Lee cried while copying Gai's pose, smiling at Naruto.

The blonde stared at his Chuunin friend, his attention was focused on Lee's attire. _'By Kami! He resembles Gai even more! Right when I thought the similarities couldn't get any more…similar. Just what the hell has been going on when I was gone?'_

"Congratulations Naruto, I expected this from you." Neji said while having a hint of smile on his lips.

The newly appointed Jounin looked at his Hyuuga friend, his attire and also caught the blonde's attention. _'Neji, the only thing you need is a pair of breasts along with a more feminine voice and you can pass on for a decent chick. Though you'd probably Hakke me into next month if I said that.' _

Naruto just smiled at Neji, the latter oblivious to the Jinchuuriki's thoughts. Tenten came up next by patting the blonde on the back.

"You gave us quite a show there Naruto-kun. You want to have a kenjutsu spar some time, it looks like you're pretty good with your wind sword."

Naruto gave a lady killer grin to Tenten, which didn't go unnoticed by the others, "I'd like that, I also want to see how well you do with a _sword_, Tenten-chan."

The Chuunin blushed at his suggestive answer and to the '-chan' suffix. The gathered shinobis gawked at the blonde, some raised their eyebrows in amusement, mainly the males, others blushed slightly, mainly the kunoichis.

'_Naruto, I don't know if I should be proud or be pissed that you're surpassing me also in the women department.'_ Kakashi silently wept, his anime tears hidden by his book.

'_**Shannaro! What the hell was that?! That's definitely not the Naruto from before!'**_Sakura was lost in her thoughts due to the actions of her teammate.

'_Heh, keep that charm up gaki and you'll have fangirls _and _fanwomen.'_ Tsunade mused.

"Man Naruto, you just became more troublesome." Shikamaru smiled at his blonde friend who grinned back.

"Nice to see you too Shika. Still getting nagged by your mom and Ino for being a lazy ass?" he chuckled.

"Troublesome women" the lazy Chuunin sighed, sitting himself down on the same tree as Naruto.

Sakura stepped up closer to her blonde teammate, "Congrats…Naruto.", she said nervously.

"Thanks…Sakura." he hesitantly replied.

The kunoichi felt a pang in her heart to the lack of '-chan' in her name, the missing suffix also didn't go unnoticed by the others. The two teammates of Team 7 just stared at each other, silence filling the area and a feeling of awkwardness was present in the air. Jiraiya, who was now standing up from his crater decided to break the tension.

"Alright, that's enough with the congratulations, I believe you have some things to say Tsunade."

The blonde Hokage sent a grateful look at her former teammate, who leaned himself onto a nearby tree, as the tension broke. Noticing that all eyes were on her, she spoke, "Yes I do, Naruto come to my office at 6:00 pm, that's about an hour from now, Kakashi, I need you there as well. Gai, Asuma, Kurenai, Genma, you're dismissed. As for you Sakura you're shift at the hospital has already started so I suggest you hurry, that is all."

"**Hai!**" the Jounins, with the exception of Neji, replied, all of them using shunshin, disappearing from sight.

"Tsunade-sama…" Sakura looked at her sensei who had an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry Sakura but you're already late by twenty minutes. We don't have anyone to cover up for you right now. I'm sorry; Shizune go with her please." The Slug Sannin looked at the brunette medic nin who nodded knowingly.

"Hai Tsunade-sama, come Sakura." Putting a hand on Sakura's shoulder.

The pink haired kunoichi turned her head to her teammate, "Naruto, it's good to see you're back."

Before he could give a reply both medic nins disappeared in a puff of smoke. Naruto stared at the disippating wisps of smoke, "Yeah, glad to be back…Sakura."

Closing his eyes he sighed before standing up from the tree and started to stretch his arms, "Well since I don't have to meet you in an hour I'm going to get something to eat at Ichiraku."

"Hey wait Lee and I will join you on your way, we're heading to training ground 14 and that's on the same direction as Ichiraku anyway." Tenten said looking to Naruto who had an eyebrow raised.

"YOSH! WE CAN NOW ASK NARUTO-KUN ABOUT HIS YOUTHFUL TRAVELS!" Lee yelled, pumping a fist in the air.

"I might as well tag along, seeing as training with Hiashi-sama isn't until three hours from now." Neji replied while eyebrows twitching at Lee's continuous ranting.

"Well I got to go, Chouji and Ino are meeting me at Chouji's favorite barbecue place. Don't want Ino being troublesome just because I'm a little late." Shikamaru yawned, giving a wave to his friends before he disappeared in a whirl of leaves.

"Wait Naruto." Tsunade said with a demanding voice.

The blonde looked up at the Hokage, "What's up?"

The Slug Sannin took out a scroll form one of her pockets and tossed it to Naruto who quickly caught it. "Here's the address to your new apartment, you're old apartment complex was torn down by severe flooding during a storm that hit about half a year ago.

All the things that weren't lost have been moved to your new apartment and new furniture has been added. Open the chakra seal inside the scroll to get the keys to your new home."

"Alright if that's all then I'll see you later Ba-chan." he said as he and Team Gai blurred out of the forest.

Tsunade had a tick on her forehead due to irritation from her surrogate brother, "Damn brat, even with all that maturity he still calls me by that damn name."

"At least he doesn't call you 'Ero-sennin'." Jiraiya replied while opening his eyes and looked at his fuming teammate.

"Whatever, come on Jiraiya I need some sake to relieve myself from all this stress." The Slug Sannin grabbed his arm dragging him out of the training grounds.

"I don't think that drinking is wise, not at this early hour. We can't have an irate, drunk Hokage running Konoha now can we." Jiraiya replied, wincing from the tight grip Tsunade had on his arm.

"Shut up!"

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Naruto and Team Gai walked down the street, all of them in a conversation on the happenings in Konoha during Naruto's absence. They came to a stop at the blonde's favorite ramen stand, Ichiraku's, which was now larger than the last time he was here.

"Oh yeah! I forgot to tell you that this place renovated when you were gone. Apparently they added other foods on their menu when their 'number one customer' temporarily left. The variety they have along with their good prices brought in a lot of people." Tenten said, answering Naruto's unspoken question.

The blonde just nodded in response while looking at the new Ichiraku. Instead of a stand it was now the size of a small restaurant. There were a dozen of tables inside with five chairs on each table. The counter now extended from the outside and arches into the restaurant, adding more seats for customers. Behind the counter was Ayame with a cash register and farther in was the kitchen which was hidden by a curtain but a silhouette of her father could be seen.

"Alright Naruto we'll see you later." Tenten said, while Lee did a pose bidding farewell and Neji just waved his hand.

The blonde continued to look at the retreating backs of his friends until they were gone from the horizon. "Well time to eat some ramen. It's been a while since I've ate any."

Walking towards the counter he spotted Ayame busy counting money while inputting it into the register. Hearing one of the chimes attached to the flaps near the entrance signaling a newly arrived customer she spoke, while not raising her head, "Welcome to Ichiraku's, I'll be with you in a moment."

"It's alright Ayame-ane, just admiring with what you've done with the place at the moment. Seems you guys have been doing well the past 3 years ne?" a familiar voice replied. Her hands nearly dropped the Ryou she was counting, slowly turning her head to the voice she saw a familiar blonde gently smiling at her.

"N-Naruto?" she stuttered.

Walking up to the counter next to her his right hand cupped her chin which caused her to blush slightly, "The one and only."

Before Naruto could react he was trapped in a tight hug from Ayame, the slight smell of miso ramen whiffed his nose. _'Hmm…Wonder if she also tastes like miso…NO! Bad hentai thoughts! BAD!'_

Steeling himself he gently broke himself from the embrace and smiled at the ramen cashier. "So how are things Ayame-ane?"

"Things have been quiet without you, I'm glad you're back. Wait here." Ayame left towards the kitchen where her father was cooking. Naruto didn't have to wait long as a loud voice boomed from the kitchen

"WHAT?!"

A man in his forties came out of the kitchen and rushed to the blonde who was seated calmly at the counter. Teuchi stopped right in front of Naruto, eyeing the blonde before giving him a pat in the shoulder with a smile.

"It's about time my 'number one' customer got back. Things weren't the same without you kid." The ramen chef heartily laughed.

"It's good to be back old man, I like what you've done with the place." The blonde replied while motioning his hands at the restaurant.

"Yeah well I didn't know that adding a few things to the menu and 'diet ramen' would bring in a lot of business. Anyway enough about that, what are you having?" he eagerly asked.

"Bring me three bowls of miso ramen old man!" Naruto heartily replied.

"Coming right up!" Teuchi chuckled while happily walking back to the kitchen.

As her father began working on Naruto's ramen, Ayame took her time to look at the blonde's changes over the years. She noticed his blonde cherubic face was now replaced with an angular and mature façade. The baby fat in his body all gone revealing a muscular and lean build. Along with his new wardrobe she found herself fighting off a mild blush on her cheeks.

Naruto caught Ayame staring at him from the corner of his eye and inwardly smirked at the blush that she was trying to cover up. He found it slightly amusing that he was having these effects on women, something he didn't have prior to leaving Konoha. Deciding to tease her a little more he turned his head and locked eyes with her.

"Like what you see ane?" the blonde smirked.

The blush that she was valiantly fighting off rushed out in full force. Her mind racing a mile a minute before rushing to the kitchen. Naruto chuckled at the sight of the retreating ramen cashier.

'_Hiro-sensei was right, seduction can be a very effective tool on the opposite sex.'_ he mused while reminiscing about his training days.

A minute later both Ayame and Teuchi came out with Naruto's order, the former still sporting a slight blush.

"Enjoy kid, these are on the house as a welcome back gift." The ramen chef smiled at the slightly drooling blonde.

"Thanks old man, Itadakimasu!" he hungrily replied.

Naruto dug in on his first bowl, though he wasn't as feral and savage with his ramen as he was when he was younger, the food was still consumed in a fast rate. Ayame, from the cash register looked on at the blonde whom was eating vigorously at his food. A smile came to her face, _'Even with his new changes his love for ramen is at least the same, good old Naruto-kun.'_

Finishing the last bowl he got up to take leave, looking at Ayame one more time he said his goodbye. "Arigatou Ayame-chan, the ramen is as good as ever, tell the old man that I'll be back tomorrow. I have to meet Tsunade-ba-chan in forty minutes and I doubt that she'll like to see me with ragged clothes."

His fingers pointed to the damage his clothes received due to his earlier fight with Kakashi. Ayame nodded and smiled in response as she watched him exit the restaurant.

Following the directions from the scroll, Naruto set out to find his new home. Ten minutes of building hopping he found himself in a middle-class area near the Hokage Tower. Slightly frowning the blonde looked once again at the scroll.

'_Well the directions say it's right here so I guess I'll just look around a bit more.' _

Two minutes later he found himself in front of an apartment room, numbered 66, of a large, decent complex, that's two blocks away from the Hokage tower. Pumping chakra into the seal within the scroll a key emerged from a puff of smoke. Taking the key he opened the door to his new apartment.

The first thing he noticed was the smell of fresh pine and disinfectant, meaning that someone has cleaned the room not too long ago. The room was much larger than his old one, the latter was only meant for one person but his new one had much more sufficient space. A decent sized kitchen with an average fridge was set right next to the dining table. To the left of the dining table was a small bar counter and shelves to store in drinks. On the other side of the apartment was a quite large living room composed of two couches and a TV set.

'_I don't think I'm going to be watching television anytime soon. But thanks anyway Ba-chan.'_ he smiled gratefully at his appliance.

Walking down further he found himself in a small hallway. A guest bathroom to the left along with what seemed to be a spare bedroom/storage room right across it. Hitting the end of the hall he found the main bedroom. It was nothing fancy but it was much better than his old rundown apartment. A queen size bed lay in the middle of the room with a night table to the side, with a lamp on top. Looking around he spied some shuriken and kunai tools that he previously had laid on top of the table, a picture of Team 7 in their genin days propped right next to them. He smiled at the reminder of his good times in the past before resuming his tour. He spied a door and opened it to find a bathroom slightly larger than the guest restroom.

'_Guess I'll wash up before I go. I still have close to half an hour, sufficient time.'_

Taking out a slightly large scroll from his shuriken pouch he opened it revealing a blood seal. Nicking his thumb with his slightly elongated canines, he ran his blood through the seal. An audible pop was heard and a large bag appeared. Naruto opened the bag and took out clothes similar to the ones he was wearing along with a dozen of scrolls. He opened the closet next to the bathroom door and set down his clothing along with his scrolls. Taking out a towel he entered the bathroom and closed the door behind him.

'_I got to thank Ba-chan, this is apartment is definitely better than the last one.'_

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"So what are you planning to do with the Council Tsunade?" Jiraiya asked his teammate while leaning against the wall of the Hokage office.

"I'm going to get them to see the truth, they were always neutral to Naruto so hopefully they will listen to reason." She sighed, leaning on her chair taking a swig of sake from her saucer.

"Yeah, with Danzo's death things have been pretty quiet and rather peaceful with the council. Things should be easier for now.", he replied while sipping his own sake.

"Hopefully it would stay that way though…" Tsunade was cut off by a knock from her door.

The door opened revealing the Chuunin Izumo, Kotetsu's friend. "Hokage-sama, Naruto-san is here to see you."

"Send him in." she said with a dismissive wave.

Izumo bowed before leaving the room. Tsunade finished of her sake before throwing the bottle to the garbage. "At least he hasn't become lazy and late like Kakashi."

Jiraiya chuckled before finishing his own alcohol beverage. A minute later the door opened again revealing Naruto in fresh clothing. The blonde walked up in the middle of the room before smiling. "Alright Ba-chan what do you need me for?"

A vein throbbed at the Hokage's forehead, and before anyone could blink a paperweight made its way towards Naruto at great speeds. The said blonde quickly caught the projectile an inch before it made contact with his face. "Don't call me that!"

"Hai, hai, Tsunade-_sama._" Naruto replied while setting the paperweight on her desk.

Tsunade reached out from a rather large drawer taking out a Jounin vest. She handed it to the other blonde who gratefully took it from her. Taking off his blue robe like cape he put on the dark green vest, which fitted perfectly in his opinion, before donning on his robe-cape back on.

"So how do I look?" he curiously asked.

"You look your ready to steal hearts of women if you want my opinion." Jiraiya chuckled.

Tsunade sent a small glare to her teammate before looking back at Naruto. "It looks good on you Naruto. Welcome to being a Jounin"

"Arigatou Ba-chan, oh hey nice apartment you got me, it's a major improvement from my last one." he said with a smile on his face.

"Glad you like it brat. Anyway Kakashi better not be late or else I'll…" Tsunade was once again cut off as the said Jounin appeared in a puff of smoke.

"Yo." he said, raising his hand in a wave.

Naruto chuckled slightly as Jiraiya snickered at Kakashi and Tsunade, the former confused at their exchange. Recovering from slight embarrassment the blonde Godaime cleared her throat, silencing everyone.

"Kakashi, glad you can make it on time. I need you to show Naruto the regulations, meeting places and lounges for Jounins seeing as he's still new to his rank." she spoke while eyeing the attentive nin.

"Hai Tsunade-sama. Come on Naruto, might as well show you some friends of mine first, as you might be seeing them often from now on, especially on missions." Kakashi said turning his gaze to his former student.

"Hai." the blonde replied, walking with the white haired nin out the door.

Before he exited the room he turned his head to Tsunade and Jiraiya, bidding them farewell, "I'll see you around, Ba-chan, Ero-sennin."

The door closed leaving the two Sannins alone once again in the office. Jiraiya sat himself down onto a chair near the Hokage's desk. Reaching inside his pockets he retrieved a scroll and set it down on the table.

"Here's a report from Hiro about his time with Naruto that I just got from the gaki himself today. It explains all that he's done and includes his training and missions he's accepted and done." he said.

Tsunade sighed as she eyed the report in front of her. _'Just what I need, more work.'_

Grabbing a large jug of sake from her desk compartment, she poured the alcohol into her saucer before downing it in one motion. "This is going to be a long night."

Jiraiya grabbed the jug and poured himself some sake sipping it down slowly. "Be lucky I'm here helping you, I could be doing my research right now." he said indignantly.

The blonde Hokage glared at her companion, "Shut up pervert."

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The sound of rushing winds howled through the mountains as a kunoichi dashed down the mountain at top speed. A Cloud hitai-ate on her forehead shined from the moonlight and was the only thing that could be distinguished as the rest was a blur of indigo.

'_Kuso, they were able to still overpower me even with Nekomata. I can't afford to get captured and I can't let them into Kumo. Forgive me Nagi-sama but I need to leave Kumogakure for the time being.'_

She was cut off from her thoughts as a three bladed scythe swung right in front of her. Bending her body back she dodged the blade by a hair.

"Tch. Thought you could get away?" a voice rang out from the darkness.

Two figures appeared on top of a large rock right in front of her, cutting her off. Both figures had matching black cloaks with a design of red clouds. One had dark silver hair slicked back, the other had a hitai-ate of Takigakure, his face hidden by his cloak.

"You really need to work on your speed Hidan, that was pitiful." the missing nin from Takigakure said to his partner.

"Shut the hell up Kakuzu. It's because you screwed up that she was able to run away." the silver haired nin known as Hidan replied.

"In the end we have her cornered. Let's get this one done soon, I'd like to go after someone with an actual bounty on their head." he replied.

"That's all you care about, your freaking money." Hidan said while retrieving his scythe via the rope he has strapped on his arm.

The kunoichi readied herself for battle, drawing two kunais and gripping one in each hand.

'_**Yugito…'**_

'_Nibi?'_

'..._**Run their too strong for you.'**_

'_But where to run to? I've used up nearly all my reserves and I can't handle anymore of your chakra after that transformation.'_

She was brought out of her musing as Hidan's scythe once again soared to her direction. Jumping to her right she avoided the weapon but this set her at Kakuzu's line of fire.

Two masks held by hundreds of black thread that attached to Kakuzu's back emerged, each gathering chakra.

"Fuuton: Atsugai!"

Raiton: Gian!"

The two masks each blasted a powerful elemental force that headed straight to Yugito. The kunoichi was about to avoid the blow but was held down by Hidan.

"You idiot! Are you trying to kill yourself?!" she shrieked.

Hidan maniacally laughed before replying, "That would be true but you see I can't die, well more like I won't die. Don't worry you won't die either bitch, at least not yet."

The two jutsus were dangerously near the Jinchuuriki, unable to escape the Akatsuki member's hold on her she shut her eyes, readying herself for the pain. A large explosion lit the night before all that remained was smoke. Kakuzu smirked at the dissipating smoke but was quickly gone when he saw Yugito unharmed.

The kunoichi opened her eyes in confusion, she saw the land in front of her form into a crater. _'I'm safe, but how?'_

"What the hell happened Kakuzu!" Hidan yelled while still holding Yugito.

"I happened." a gruff and familiar voice behind him answered.

The silver haired nukenin turned around only to meet a blue fist ram itself in his face forcing his hold on Yugito to loosen and sending him flying to a tree.

Yugito looked at her savior in gratitude but it quickly turned to distrust and confusion when she saw that he was also wearing an Akatsuki cloak.

"What are you doing Kisame?" Kakuzu asked, anger apparent in his voice.

"I'm just being myself you immortal freaks." he sneered.

"Is disobeying orders being yourself? So you going traitor on the organization fish freak?!" Hidan yelled with malice as he was using his scythe to help him stand up from the tree he was punched to by Kisame.

"It can't be called betrayal if we were never loyal to it from the start." another voice spoke.

A figure appeared in a whirl of leaves and revealed another Akatsuki member, this one had crimson red eyes with tomoe marks spinning rapidly.

"So, going traitor too Uchiha?" Kakuzu said with venom.

Yugito stared at the four Akatsuki members in confusion before yelling, "W-What's going on?!"

Itachi looked at the female Jinchuuriki emotionlessly, his gaze then turned to his partner. "Kisame."

The former mist nin nodded in response and hit Yugito on the back of the head, knocking her out.

"I don't know what you two are planning but you're not getting away." Kakuzu said as thousands of black threads emerged from his body. His body, now covered with the black wires, was doubled in size and two more masks emerged, totaling four altogether.

"Lord Jashin shall have your blood!!" Hidan maliciously laughed at he readied his scythe to strike.

Itachi set himself ready whilst Kisame unwrapped Samehada from its bandages. Silence ensued as the two teams looked at each other analytically.

Hidan was once again about to throw his scythe when a white hand grabbed his shoulder from behind. He quickly glared at the figure behind him but was quickly displaced by confusion, "Zetsu, what are you doing here?!"

The venus fly trap nukenin looked at the four Akatsuki members before turning his steel gaze to Kisame and Itachi. "Shishou has sent me to deal with the traitors."

Itachi looked at the Zetsu with his emotionless façade, _'He could make things a bit difficult. But still not a problem.'_

"Heh so it's three on two huh? Well come on you punks, Samehada's been itching for a fight." Kisame yelled charismatically.

Zetsu smirked at the Kiri nukenin before replying, "Make that four on two."

The other Akatsuki members were confused until a figure came out of the group of nearby trees. His face hidden by an odd orange mask that has a hole for his right eye. His body covered in all black clothing.

"So you've brought your subordinate, his name was Tobi right?" Kakuzu stated more than asked.

Tobi nodded and replied, "It's good to see you Kakuzu-san, Hidan-san, Itachi-san, and Kisame-san."

The odd nin bowed his head while Hidan glared at the newcomer. "Now's not the freaking time to be polite dammit! The numbers are in our favor so let's get this on. I will condemn them all in the name of Lord Jashin!"

His large scythe flew at Kisame at a fast speed. The kiri nukenin stepped to the side, taking a hold on the attached rope he pulled on it with his inhuman strength causing Hidan to be thrown in the air and headed in his direction.

The religion devoted nin didn't have time to react as he soared in the sky before Samehada cleaved across his upper body, sending him crashing to the mountain side.

"That idiot never thinks before he acts." Kakuzu sighed before sending his masks to attack Itachi.

"Fuuton: Atsugai!"

"Katon: Bakufu!"

The fuuton boosted fire of one of the mask's jutsus' increasing its heat and speed as it headed towards Itachi. The Sharingan user stared impassively at the combination attack before his Sharingan spun rapidly.

"…Mangekyou Sharingan."

The three tomoe marks transformed to what looked like a three bladed shuriken. Steeling his gaze, Itachi set his eyes on the oncoming attack.

"Amaterasu!!"

A jet of black flames erupted from his eyes and enveloped Kakuzu's attack. The oncoming stream of dark flames pierced through and headed for Kakuzu. The said Akatsuki member's eyes widened slightly before jumping out of harms way, narrowly avoiding the black flames that scorched and melted the earth.

Kisame whistled at his partner's attack but was suddenly on the defensive from a blow from Zetsu's kunais. The Kiri nin was about to retaliate but Hidan's scythe forced him to block. Seeing an opening Zetsu sent powerful kick to Kisame's ribs, sending him skidding back a few meters.

"Heh, this is getting interesting." the shark like nin grinned showing his razor sharp teeth.

"Yes, too bad your end is now." a voice below him replied.

Zetsu's hands sprouted from the ground and grasped Kisame's ankles tightly, limiting his mobility. Before he can set himself free, Hidan made his way to him, his scythe ready to swing. Kisame noticed Hidan's figure but was too late as he made his way to him.

'_Shit!'_

"Die!" the gray haired Akatsuki member yelled as threw his scythe with immense force. The projectile sliced through the air and headed towards the trapped Kisame who was struggling to free himself from Zetsu.

As the scythe was three meters from Kisame a small clay bird made contact with the weapon causing an explosion that deflected the blade and landing next to Itachi who was facing off Tobi in taijutsu while countering Kakuzu's jutsus.

_'What the hell?!'_ Hidan thought while retrieving his scythe.

Now out of harms way, Kisame, using his superior strength grabbed one of Zetsu's hand and lifted him from the ground before sending an empowered punch to his stomach, sending him crashing to a tree ten meters away. Zetsu slowly rose from the broken tree, slightly dizzy from the force of the attack.

Suddenly two distinct chakra signatures flared, the group of nins momentarily stopped their fighting and spied the new arrivals. A large clay bird descended from the sky and landed next to the unconscious form of Yugito, on top of it were two more Akatsuki members. One with long blonde hair and the other with short red hair.

"It seems we came just in time for a party ne Sasori-danna?" the blonde one asked his red headed partner.

"Hai, right on time. Seems your holding up pretty good their Kisame, Itachi." the red head said.

"Che! What took you two so long, having an argument about art again?!" the kiri nukenin replied.

Itachi looked at Kakuzu and smirked, "Me, Kisame, Sasori and Deidara. The odds are even, let's see how you fare against us now."

Kakuzu cursed inwardly, "It doesn't matter, you traitors will die here!" he growled.

Itachi had an amused look on his face, which infuriated him even more. "What's so funny?!"

"Hmph. Fool." he replied, closing his eyes after.

A second later he reopened them and revealed his Mangekyou once again. Kakuzu accidentally locked eyes with his momentarily but that was enough for Itachi. The wire-using Akatsuki member suddenly felt himself unable to steer his gaze off the weasel's eyes. Itachi smirked at Kakuzu who was struggling with his Sharingan induced genjutsu.

The doujutsu wielder's face became serious as his Mangekyou began to spin. One word left his mouth that sent terror into his Akatsuki opponent.

"...Tsukiyomi."

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**(A/N:** It's finally done, chapter five is done. Well now please review, it's the nice thing to do!)

**Translations:**

**Mangekyou Sharingan:( Kaleidescope Sharingan)**

**Katon: Bakufu (Fire Release: Explosion)?**

**Tsukiyomi (Goddess of Moon)?**

**Shishou (Master)**


	6. 6: Of Betrayals

**Disclamer: I do not own Naruto**

"Dattebayo!" - talking

_'Dattebayo'_ - thoughts

**"Dattebayo" - emphasized words**

**(A/N: **Yes there **will be a pairing**, I'm at the moment weighing my options on who will be paired with out blonde dynamite along with other people.)

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**Chapter 6: Of Betrayals**

Darkness…everything was nothing but a dark void, an empty world, cold and frightening. The world of Tsukiyomi, he has only heard of its powers and now he himself has fallen victim to this jutsu. Looking around more he finds himself chained tightly to a crucifix leaving him open and vulnerable. His eyes landed in front of him where the man responsible for his predicament stood calmly, the traitorous weasel, Uchiha Itachi.

"Enjoying the view?" the Sharingan wielder asks rhetorically.

"Feh. Go screw yourself Uchiha. You think this genjutsu can take me on. I've lived for centuries and experienced many things, my body can take on any torture you can give me, your efforts are vain." Kakuzu spoke with a slightly amused tone.

"Yes, I see that, after almost all of your original body has been replaced but there is one thing that has stayed with you." replied Itachi coolly.

"And what would that be?" he replied with amusement still present in his voice.

Pulling out his right arm from his Akatsuki cloak, Itachi pointed to his skull, "Your head, or to be more specific, your brain."

Kakuzu's eyes slightly widened, his amused attitude now replaced with dead seriousness and slight worry. "And your point is?"

"No matter how used to pain your body becomes, there is a limit to how much strain your mind can take, and your mind has been active for centuries, making it less resistant to strain." Itachi explained emotionlessly.

"That may be true but there is no place in my body that can feel any pain or any feeling for that matter, so your plan has failed you…and you were supposed to be a genius." the restrained Akatsuki mocked.

The doujutsu wielder felt a smirk cross his lips, "Imbecile."

Extending his right hand, an average katana materialized near his palm. As the sword came to focus, Itachi gripped it tightly before setting his eyes on Kakuzu once again.

"**For 144 hours you will be stabbed…"**

"You truly are an idiot Uchiha! I told you that would never work!" Kakuzu snickered at the charging Sharingan user.

"…**through the brain."** Itachi finished.

His taunts came to an abrupt end as a feeling spread throughout him, one that he hasn't felt in decades…pain. With a body unused to such a painful sensation due to having not felt it for years, Kakuzu was only able to do one thing, scream.

"GRAAAAAHHHH!!"

His screams in agony continued as he spied the katana that Itachi wielded thrust through the middle of his head.

The Uchiha's Sharingan eyes locked with Kakuzu's, the latter showing unbridled anger. Another smirk graced Itachi's face, this time though it was one of sadistic glee.

The impaled Akatsuki member's eyes widened at the expression, his will to endure was tested when he heard the next words Itachi spoke.

"141 hours, 59 minutes and 59 seconds to go."

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Kisame grinned wildly as he swung Samehada at Hidan, who frantically parried the sword with his scythe, locking both weapons together.

"I'm not hearing any of your 'I'm Lord Jashin's bitch!' speeches anymore. What's the matter? Shark got your tongue?" he chuckled.

Hidan would've spoke blasphemy about the mockery of his God and that bad pun if he wasn't putting everything he had to keep Samehada at bay. His scythe was worn and sustained heavy damage due to Kisame's inhuman strength, and Samehada's iron scales weren't helping either.

Readjusting his grip on Samehada, Kisame pulled his sword backwards. The action resulted in Hidan's scythe to split in two due the Samehada shaving the bar. Smiling at the result, the former mist nin didn't waste time and thrust his sword forward to Hidan's abdomen, causing the religious nin to fly across twenty meters and slamming him onto a boulder.

"Shark stud 1, religious dumbass 0."

Zetsu eyed Sasori warily, shinobis who use puppet jutsu were a tricky bunch, you never know what they have up their sleeves, and Sasori was probably the best, hands down.

"Why are you betraying the organization? What do all of you have to gain with this stunt of yours?" Zetsu asked cautiously.

Sasori stared at him blankly for a moment before replying, "We have nothing to gain…"

"Then why are you do-"Zetsu spoke but was cut off by the red haired puppeteer.

"…**BUT**…we have everything to lose."

Zetsu narrowed his eyes at his opponent, "Explain."

"Can you not see it? That your 'shishou' deems us as nothing more but expendable pawns to his desire?" a voice behind the former Grass nin asked.

Zetsu spun around and found Itachi making his way to him, behind the Sharingan user was Kakuzu's limp body.

"Can you not see that we are not so willing to just be used as canon fodder to his foolish desires of power?" the Uchiha continued.

Zetsu looked at him emotionlessly, but his eyes burned with intensity, "Simpletons like you will never understand the beauty of his goal."

"His goal is to obtain power through the bijuus and to use it for his sick revenge, he's no better than Orochimaru." Itachi calmly replied.

"Do not compare Shishou with that damnable snake." Zetsu sneered.

"What will you do about it? You're outmatched and outclassed." Sasori spoke as he wielded a doll that resembled Sandaime Kazekage.

The Grass nin quickly surveyed the situation, to the left was Tobi in a near stalemate with Deidara in ninjutsu. To his right was Hidan doing everything he can to get the upper hand on Kisame, but was failing terribly. Finally right behind Itachi was Kakuzu's fallen body, whether the nukenin was dead or alive, he didn't know.

Seeing Zetsu off guard Sasori attacked with his puppet, pushing chakra into the lifeless figurine, iron sand flooded out of it and encircled around him, "Satetsu Shigure!"

The iron sand formed into small compact balls before shooting off at Zetsu with frightening speed. Sensing chakra, the Grass Akatsuki member looked behind him only to see a multitude of iron bullets heading straight for him.

Quickly flashing through seals, Zetsu cried out, "Doton: Doryuuheki!"

Shooting a stream of mud from his mouth, Zetsu formed an earthen wall reinforced with chakra.

Sasori stared impassively before smirking at his opponents defense, "Sorry but, that won't work with me."

The iron bullets pierced through the defensive wall, some scratching Zetsu's skin while others lodged into his body, causing the nukenin to drop his defense.

"Da…mmit." he gasped as he struggled to keep himself up.

"My iron sand is also poisonous, even with your kekkai genkai you can't stop it from spreading, the best you can do is to prolong you death." Sasori said while making his way to him, Itachi following suit.

"S-shit…must….Tobi! Hidan! Retreat!" Zetsu wheezed while trying to back away from his two opponents.

"What makes you think we'll let you get away?!" Kisame yelled while heaving his sword to his shoulder.

Using the last ounce of his strength, Zetsu shunshined next to Kakuzu's body, checking his fallen comrade. _'Still breathing.'_

A slightly singed Tobi and a heavily bleeding Hidan teleported next to the two. Zetsu looked at his subordinate, giving an unspoken command to which Tobi complied.

"Well we have to go now, Itachi-senpai, Ja!" Tobi said while performing seals. His hand landed on the last seal causing his body along with his comrades to dissolve into the ground.

Before anyone can do anything, the Akatsuki members escaped.

Itachi's Sharingan deactivated while Deidara and Sasori put away their respective 'artistic weapons'. Kisame walked over to the trio with Samehada strapped to his back.

"Let's not stay here for long, Kumo Anbu probably sensed all the chakra we used, it won't be long before they get here." Kisame reasoned.

Deidara nodded and looked to Yugito's unconscious form, "What about her, yeah? I mean we did come all this way to make sure her bijuu doesn't get extracted, yeah."

"Leave her, let Kumo handle their shinobis." Sasori replied while leaning himself on a tall rock.

Before anyone can say anything else, a figure rushed out from the trees on the mountain ledge. The said figure landed next to the former Akatsuki members, the moonlight shining onto his robes and his hat that had the kanji for "Lightning".

"It seems our problems are solved," Itachi spoke emotionlessly while eyeing the newcomer, "How are you today, Sandaime Raikage-sama?"

The Raikage took of his hat, revealing a man in his early forties with short, sand colored hair with a trimmed brown mustache and short beard. Though the most striking feature was his bronze eyes that glowed like the moon.

A group of Anbu emerged and appeared next to the Raikage. Each awaiting further orders.

"To what honor do I have that four Akatsuki members are here in my territory with one of my shinobis unconscious?" he asked with a hint of anger in his voice.

"Do not worry yourself Raikage-sama, we have nothing to do with the current situation as we have…detached ourselves from Akatsuki." Itachi replied, obviously the negotiator for the group.

"And how can I believe your words?" he asked with suspicion.

"For starters, you can have your kunoichi back, as you can see there's no harm done, besides chakra exhaustion and small wounds from a battle she had with our…_acquaintances_ from the organization." the Sharingan wielder once again replied, moving out of the way as the Kage picked up Yugito bridal style and gave her to one of the Anbu.

"I thank you for giving me back my apprentice, but what are you four up to?" the Kage spoke as he steeled his gaze at the four former Akatsuki. The remaining ANBU took a ready stance, preparing to act in a moment's notice.

"As I've said before, we have detached ourselves from the organization due to inner conflict with our superior."

"A rebellion? A mutiny?" the elder nin asked.

Kisame shook his head before replying, "No old man, a betrayal."

Silence filled the clearing as a gust of wind flew by causing fallen leaves to blow away. The Raikage looked on at the group of four, analyzing them, while Itachi's group remained silent. Seeing no signs of deception he softened his eyes a bit, but still remained on guard.

"I will never understand the mind of a nukenin." the kage chuckled as he broke the silence.

Itachi looked on before he spoke, "One word of advice…"

The elder nin's eyes stood attentive to the young nukenin.

"…I suggest you make some comrades, just because Akatsuki has suffered the loss of four members doesn't mean they won't get more. As you noticed that two members were capable to infiltrate and kidnap that kunoichi over there with little trouble." he continued on as he pointed to Yugito.

"And how do you suggest for Kumo to 'make some comrades'?" the Raikage asked inquisitively.

"The answer is alliances yeah, with other villages with Jinchuuriki, yeah." Deidara said.

"Alliances?" he asked skeptically.

"Yes, alliances would help, especially with villages that contain others like her." Sasori spoke while looking at the Nibi container.

'_Others like Yugito?'_ the Raikage thought as a bit of surprise etched into him.

"I suggest you go with Konoha and Suna, both have Jinchuurikis with them, the one in Konoha is favored by the Godaime while the one in Suna is the current Kazekage." Itachi said.

The leader of Kumogakure thought about his words before eyeing the group warily, "Why are you helping us with this?"

"I have told you already that we have our reasons, we will not stand to be used for a twisted man's idiotic ideals. In by helping you keep your Jinchuuriki from our _leader_, we ourselves benefit from getting what you would call 'payback'." Itachi replied coolly while stressing the word 'leader'.

"So you will become a thorn in his side ne?" the elder man asked.

"If you put it like that, then yes." the doujutsu wielder said.

"I see…well I thank you once again for saving my apprentice, but…", the Raikage pulled out a slightly larger than average katana whilst five ANBU members took out their own weapons. "…that doesn't change the fact that all of you are S-class nukenin, come quietly and we could reason your trials."

"You really think you can take us? Even a Kage would be hard pressed with us, and I doubt any of your Anbu can take us on." said Kisame with a hint of amusement and anticipation.

"It sure won't hurt to try, wouldn't it?" the Sandaime asked.

Sasori, Deidara and Kisame kept silent, but sported wild grins while Itachi had a small smirk. The Uchiha activated his Sharingan, intimidating the Anbu, before speaking, "I'm sorry Raikage-sama, we can't do that for two reasons. First, we have other things to do than to get imprisoned, and secondly…were already gone."

Before the Kage could say anything, the group of former Akatsuki members lost their forms, revealing four columns of water that splashed down to the ground.

'_Mizu bunshin.'_ the Raikage inwardly groaned.

"What do we do now Nagi-sama?" a female Anbu asked.

The brown haired Sandaime looked at the six ANBU members and the unconscious Yugito. "Mei, I need you to take Yugito to the hospital. The rest of you spread out and search this area for anything suspicious, I at least want to get an idea of what happened here."

"Raikage-sama, can those nukenin be trusted?" a male ANBU asked.

Nagi thought for a moment before replying, "An enemy of my enemy is my friend, at least I hope so, in our case. But that's enough questions for now, you know your tasks, go!"

"Hai!" the Anbu chorused and blurred out from view.

Putting back his hat on, the Raikage looked at the full moon and the cloudless night. Closing his eyes, he took a breath of mountain air before disappearing into darkness.

'_Konoha and Suna eh? Well I guess it won't hurt to try."_

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Two shinobis walked down the streets of Konoha, even though night has fallen, the roads were still quite busy. The shorter of the two, though only a fraction of an inch, with blonde hair caught the citizens and shinobis attention. Most of which were contemplating on his resemblance to the Yondaime, while the females just looked on with a slight blush and a little drool.

"It seems you're quite the stud around here, Naruto." Kakashi said while still reading his newest Icha Icha novel.

Naruto glared at his sempai with annoyance, though getting stares of lust from women was sort of refreshing, it got really irritating in the long run. Especially since he could sense quite a number of kunoichis stalking him.

"Great, just what I need, fangirls." the blonde sighed.

"It's not that bad Naruto, I mean I know a lot of people who would do anything just to have the attention of the opposite sex. These women are flocking to you, take this chance that you have and relish it!" he giggled pervertedly.

'_Who does he know that would crave fangirls? Hmm…' _the blonde thought.

"When you said that you know people that do anything to get attention of women, does that include Gai, his eyebrows, and his horrendous spandex?" he asked curiously.

Kakashi's giggling came to a halt, his face became serious before replying, "Let's not ask that question okay? The first time I asked Gai that question…well you can say that was the first and last time I ever asked him something pertaining to the opposite sex."

Naruto shuddered at the possibilities that Gai could've done. Those rants about 'Youth', those green spandex suits that showed way too much of something he didn't want to see, or that seemingly invincible genjutsu of a sunset that even Kakashi's sharingan had a hard time with.

The blonde was cut from his thoughts as they reached a complex with that sign of the Leaf imprinted on the door. Kakashi closed his book and opened the door, motioning Naruto to follow suit.

"This is the Chuunin/Jounin lounge, pretty much self explanatory. A place where we just relax for a bit, getting away from the stress we get on a normal shinobi basis." the cycloptic Jounin explained as they made their way through a hallway with doors on the left and right sides.

The duo stopped at a door that had the words 'Chuunin-Jounin 12' written on a steel plate. Grabbing the door knob, Kakashi made his way in with Naruto right behind him.

The lounge was a large room with furniture and couches spread about with televisions, a few large sized refrigerators were placed in respective corners which were undoubtedly filled with refreshments.

There were numerous Chuunins and Jounins happily chatting about non-shinobi topics, though their attentions were brought to the two arrivals. Kakashi's visible eye crinkled into a smile while Naruto kept silent and looked at the crowd impassively. The duo walked in and through their fellow shinobis, all of whom returned to their conversations while still keeping some attention to the unfamiliar blonde.

Looking around the two saw some familiar faces huddled together. In a corner where two couches connected were Kurenai, Asuma, Genma, Gai, Anko, Hana, and Yuugao. The group seemed to have been talking about an interesting topic.

"So let me get this straight, that little blonde gaki that I remember from the Chuunin exams three years ago, kicked Kakashi's ass even though he was using his Sharingan?" Anko asked a little skeptically.

"How many times do I have to repeat myself Anko? Yes he beat Kakashi hands down, I was there along with Gai and his team, Genma, Asuma, Shizune, Sakura, Tsunade-sama and Jiraiya-sama." Kurenai responded with a hint of annoyance.

"Wow, to beat Kakashi-sempai on a full out battle, he's probably one of the strongest in the village now." Yuugao exclaimed.

"You can say that again, after all he isn't the apprentice of the Gama Sennin for nothing." Asuma said while lighting a cigarette.

"To think that the kid was with the Rookie 9 along with my otouto, he must be something." Hana spoke while sipping an unknown beverage.

"YOSH! NARUTO-KUN IS TRULY THE EPITOME OF YOUTH!" Gai shouted, much to the irritation of his friends and comrades.

"Tone it down will ya? This is a place to relax and Kami, I really need it." Kakashi said while making his way towards the group.

"Ah! Kakashi, we were just talking about the bout you had with Naruto, it's probably going to be the talk of the village for a while." Genma said while chugging down a beer.

"What's going to be the talk of the village?" Naruto asked, making his presence known.

The group turned to the blonde teen, most of them smiled and greeted him while the ones who hadn't seen him yet stared on, namely Yuugao, Anko and Hana.

'_Kami-sama…from cute brat to a lean, sexy stud...'_ Anko thought while daydreaming of fantasies that only she was capable of actually doing.

'_Calm yourself girl, he's just Kakashi-sempai's student. Sure he's handsome, sexy, and built with a nice body that I'd like to…STOP! STOP RIGHT THERE!'_ Yuugao thought, unconsciously breaking the sake bottle she had in her hand.

'_Control yourself Hana, he's just…he's...he's…just…hot…Wait! What am I thinking?! But yes he's so…ARGH!'_ Hana chugged her drink quickly while her thoughts were in conflict.

"They're talking about how you kicked my ass in a full out spar during your Jounin promotion, Naruto." said Kakashi.

The moment those words left the silver haired Jounin's lips the room became quiet as the Chuunins and Jounins turned their gaze to the blonde teen, who was a little unnerved by the stares. Naruto quickly sat down next to Hana, much to her pleasure and frustration, hoping to avoid the looks that the other nins were giving him.

"Well now, pass me some sake Gai, we need to celebrate my students success." Kakashi stated as he sat down in a chair opposite to the couches.

Gai nodded his head while taking out three sake bottles from a near refrigerator and a few saucers. The moment the sake was put on the table the room came to life once again as the nins started to converse with each other once more.

Naruto sighed as the tension broke down, taking one of the saucers which he filled with sake. The others seated around him raised an eyebrow in question.

"Are you sure you can drink, Naruto?" Asuma asked, his question reflecting the others thoughts.

His question was answered as the blonde quickly downed the sake like a pro. Setting down his saucer, he filled it with more sake before replying, "I started to drink about a year and a half ago, Jiraiya-sensei told me that if I'm old enough to hold my ground in the shinobi world then I should be old enough to drink."

The others accepted his answer and took a drink themselves. Each of them talking about the happenings in Konoha and in their personal lives. Naruto was stuck having a little 'interrogation' by Anko, to which was stopped by Kurenai, Yuugao and Hana before things got out of hand.

Two hours passed and the room was nearly empty except for a few Jounins and the group Naruto was currently hanging out with.

"Well, I think we should call this a night." Genma said while raising himself shakily, obviously drunk.

"Hey Genma, think you can help me with those two?" Kakashi said a little tipsy, pointing to a smashed Asuma and an unconscious Gai.

"Alright, alright." he irritably replied.

'_That leaves Naruto with the women, just like I planned. Hatake, you genius bastard you.'_ The silver haired Jounin snickered.

The two Jounins picked up their friends and bid farewell to the group, leaving Naruto with four intoxicated kunoichis. The blonde sweat dropped at the sight before him, Anko was red in the face and could barely keep her eyes open, Hana was asleep while talking about doggy style with a spiky haired blonde (to which Naruto didn't understand that it was him that she was referring to), and Yuugao was staring at him intensely while swaying a bit in her seat. His eyes looked to the remaining kunoichi, Yuuhi Kurenai, who seemed to be fairing better than the others, despite being tipsy.

"Are they going to be alright, Kurenai-san?" Naruto asked, referring to the three drunken kunoichis.

The red eyed beauty looked at her friends before giving a sigh, "I knew th-that this would happen."

"So what do we do know?" he asked.

"Well can you do me a favor and bring them to my apartment?"

"That won't be a problem, but where do you live?"

"I'll give you the directions as we go, though it's not that far from here, only a few blocks." She said while cautiously standing herself up.

Naruto offered her his hand to which she was grateful for, as he got a good grip he lifted her into a bridal style hold, much to the embarrassment of the kunoichi.

"What are you doing?" she asked in surprise.

"You seem to be a bit out of it right now Kurenai-san, plus if I carry you things would go a lot quicker than walking around being tipsy." Naruto responded.

Kurenai took a moment, but nodded her head, accepting the answer in gratitude, after all she really couldn't do much with her drunken state.

'_Plus, his body feels so warm and comfortable…mmm.'_

She was brought out of her musings as she heard an audible pop. Looking behind the blonde, she spotted three Kage Bunshins, each carrying one of the passed out kunoichis. Naruto looked at his clones before giving them a mental command, the clones nodded and all of them jumped down an open window.

Naruto and company were jumping on top of rooftops that seemed a bit familiar to the blonde. He shook his head and marked it as coincidence as he rushed to the directions Kurenai gave him.

"Turn right at the next rooftop and it should be the large apartment complex two blocks away from the Hokage tower." she said while enjoying the night breeze as Naruto carried her to her abode.

The blonde complied and headed towards the mentioned direction. As he reached his destination, he abruptly stopped and stared at the complex wide eyed.

'_This is my apartment complex!'_ he thought in surprise.

He was jolted out of his thoughts by a pinch from Kurenai.

"Naruto! Listen! My apartment room is on the third floor, you can drop me off there." the red eyed kunoichi said.

The blonde complied with her request and shunshined to the third floor along with his clones. As they reached the floor, Naruto set Kurenai down, to which she was grateful for the help, as she led them to her room. As Naruto proceeded he spied his own apartment room, number 66, and couldn't help but yawn.

'_I really need some sleep, it's been a rather eventful day.'_ he tiredly thought.

He was jerked back to reality as Kurenai stopped in her tracks before facing a door numbered 65.

'_Kami-sama, don't tell me…'_ he thought.

The kunoichi unlocked the door with her key and looked at Naruto and smiled, "Naruto, can you please bring them in."

The blonde looked at her and the door number 65 before replying, "Hai."

The three clones entered the room and spied a large couch. Setting the three kunoichis in, they dispelled themselves in a puff of smoke. Naruto made his way out the door with Kurenai following behind him.

"Arigatou, Naruto, I hope we get to see more of each other as friends and co-workers now that you're Jounin." she said.

The blonde just smiled in response and turned to leave. But before he could make a step, Kurenai gave him a peck on the cheeks before shutting the door behind her. Naruto's eyes became the size of dinner plates, his hand caressing the cheek that Kurenai kissed. He stood there for a minute before composing himself as he opened the door to his own apartment.

'_Women are so troublesome.'_

With that thought, the blonde entered and shut the door behind him.

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Translations:

**Satetsu Shigure (Iron Sand Drizzle)**

**Mizu bunshin (water clone)**

**shishou (master)**

**(A/N: **Finally updated my fic, hope you guys enjoy this one and don't forget to push to button that says to SUBMIT REVIEW!


	7. 7: Revolutions within the Mist

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

"Oi" -speaking

_'Oi'_ - thoughts

(A/N: For the pairing with Naruto, I've put it down to three choices. NaruKure, NaruYuugao, or NaruYugito. I have some people asking for a harem, though it was tempting I decided to not to, it's pretty hard to make harems with all the women and all.)

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_Kirigakure; __8:00 pm_

A man in white and blue robes leaned himself onto a nearby wall in his office for support, his body stiff and his clothes soaked in crimson. His breath was ragged and his body in constant pain as his right hand felt over his wounded, bleeding stomach. The man's eyes looked around the room before he set his gaze at the form of his assailant in the corner of the office. His eyes hardened to an intense glare, though that was the only thing he could do to retaliate at his current situation.

"W-why?" he wheezed.

The assassin said nothing and came out of the shadows in the corner to the center of the room. The light of the candles that lit the office at night revealed a tall, slender kunoichi, with shoulder length green hair and eyes with a six foot katana strapped on her back, all dressed in a Jounin uniform with a Kiri hitai-ate wrapped on her left arm. The kunoichi unsheathed her katana and pressed its edged at the man's neck.

"You're days as a tyrant is over, it's about time for a new leader and free the people from your dirty grasps…Godaime Mizukage." she said as she pressed the blade closer to his neck, drawing blood.

The Mizukage's eyes widened slightly as his breath became wheezes for air. His body shifted in the direction of the assassin, and hardened his gaze at her. His hands clenched to a tight fist as he viewed the kunoichi in disgust. "I-I should've killed all of you! You an-and the Kiri Shinobigatana Shichinin Shu! I should've destroyed you all and those accursed kekkai genkai clans years ago!"

The kunoichi was unfazed at his protests and readied her katana to strike. "Are those your last words Godaime?"

The Mizukage opened his mouth to speak but was stopped as the long katana impaled him through his heart. His eyes looked to the kunoichi in mild shock as he coughed out blood onto the wooden floor. The female Jounin looked at the man's twitching body before she twisted her blade while it was still inside him, earning her a small gasp as the Godaime slumped against the wall, dead.

"That was a rhetorical question my dear Godaime-sama." she whispered sarcastically.

The green haired Jounin pulled out her blade from the corpse, letting it collapse to the ground. With a quick flick of the wrist she disposed of the excess blood on her blade before cleaning off the rest with a cloth from her pouch. She surveyed her sword for a moment before sheathing it back.

"Don't you think that was a little sadistic there, Mahiro-chan?" a masculine voice spoke from behind.

The said kunoichi turned around and spied a tall, feminine male shinobi dressed in standard Kiri Jounin clothes (basically almost the same as Konoha's) with a shorter but larger sword strapped on his back.

"He should've suffered more than that for what he put Kirigakure and our people through, Hiro-kun." she replied as she took out the hat of the Mizukage from one of the desk drawers and put it on.

Hiro had a small smile at his lips as he walked towards the Kage's desk, "So what are your orders Mahiro-chan?…or should I say, Rokudaime Mizukage?"

Mahiro looked out to the village through one of the windows. She smiled at the wondrous sight of the village at night, but quickly frowned at the poverty of its citizens.

"Gather all available ninjas in the village for a meeting, tell them that there's a new Mizukage calling the shots." she said while still staring down at the village.

"First the leader of the Kiri no Shinobigatana Shichinin Shu, and now the leader of the village. You always were the type of person to take charge." Hiro chuckled before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

Mahiro smiled slightly as she continued to gaze at the night life of Kirigakure with one thought.

_'I will make this village prosperous as it once was, soon Saisei-sensei, very soon.' _

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_Next day; Konoha; 6:00 am _

Naruto abruptly woke up to the sounds of a loud beeping from his alarm clock. He squinted his eyes at it and looked at the time before destroying the clock with a chakra enhanced fist.

_'It's only __6:00__, still plenty of time to sleep.' _he thought groggily.

With that happy thought, the blonde slumped down his head onto his pillow and fell back asleep. After ten minutes Naruto was once again woken up, this time by the sound of knocking on his door. He grudgingly stood up from bed and put on his pants before greeting his visitor.

"This better be good, or else…" he left the threat hanging as he opened the door.

His visitor turned out to be Genma whom was smiling back at him. "Just got promoted to Jounin and you're already threatening people."

"Too early in the morning." the blonde grumbled.

"It comes with the job so deal with it. Anyway, Hokage-sama's calling you so be in her office in ten minutes." Genma replied before he disappeared in a whirl of leaves.

Naruto sighed as he closed the door and headed for his room for a change in clothing. Whatever Tsunade had planned for him, it had better be good because his head was still pounding from his late night drinking fest.

Tsunade sighed as she took a swig of her sake. The amount of paperwork before her was ridiculous, and it wasn't even daylight yet!

She sighed once more as she rubbed her temples and looked at the message she received from a Kiri Jounin. It seems that Kirigakure was extending an invitation for an alliance with her village by the Rokudaime Mizukage, or so what the message said.

_'Still, for a village that stayed neutral for decades to propose an alliance suddenly…it's just…odd.' _she thought as she finished her sake bottle.

A knock disrupted her thoughts, "Come in."

The door opened revealing a much more awake Naruto, who sat himself down onto a nearby chair. "What did you call me for, Tsunade-bachaan?"

A small vein throbbed in her forehead, but she continued on. "I received an important message about Kirigakure. It seems that there's a new Mizukage leading the village and he or she is proposing an alliance to us."

Tsunade looked at Naruto, who was listening attentively and motioning her to continue.

"As you know, Kirigakure has stayed neutral for at least 7 decades, so it's a bit odd for it to suddenly asking for an alliance. So I'm making you a liaison between Konoha and Kiri. You will leave tomorrow for Kiri with one of their shinobis and be stationed there for at least a few weeks." she said as she tossed him the mission scroll which he caught.

"Wait! What about Sasuke? Isn't it almost time for the damn hebi to take his body?!" Naruto exclaimed, as he rose from his seat while gripping the scroll tightly.

Tsunade raised a hand to silence him, which he hesitantly complied as he sat himself back down. The Hokage looked at Naruto in the eye before replying, "Six months ago, it was reported by a number of Jiraiya's spies that Orochimaru has delayed taking over Sasuke's body by another three years."

Naruto's eyes widened at this revelation before asking, "Why?"

Tsunade let out a breath she didn't know was holding, due to relief, as Naruto seemed to have calmed down enough to hear an explanation. She shifted into a more comfortable position before replying, "According to the reports, Akatsuki has taken initiative against Orochimaru, severely injuring him and his forces. At that time, Sasuke was still not ready for the transfer, so he used another body to take host of. This gave Sasuke three more years before Orochimaru transfers again."

Naruto relaxed himself at the news he just heard. Although Sasuke had betrayed him and the blonde no longer had any fleeting thoughts of saving him, he'd at least make sure that Orochimaru didn't get the Sharingan. The snake was already deadly enough, Konoha didn't need him to become more dangerous.

_'It may sound cruel, but if things go out of hand I will end you myself, Sasuke.'_ he grimly thought.

Shaking away his thoughts, he decided to change the subject. "Jeez ba-chan, I just got back and you're already sending me off." he chuckled.

Tsunade smiled at the change of atmosphere, "Gomen Naruto, but you should know that you're one of the strongest ninjas we have available. We need to make a good impression on Kiri, and having an alliance with them is also beneficial for us. Plus, according to Jiraiya, you have some powerful friends over there."

"Yeah, I do...Well since I'm going tomorrow, I might as well get ready now, ja ne." he grinned as he left through the door.

The blonde Hokage waved at him dismissively as he disappeared behind the door and closed it with a quiet 'click'.

Naruto yawned as he made his way through the deserted streets of Konoha. His stomached grumbled as he walked to his apartment. There weren't any restaurants open this early, so he was only left with home made food. But he had no problem with that, his cooking skills were good, that he was confident of.

The blonde stopped dead in his tracks as the thought of cooking came to mind. One thing was needed for cooking, groceries, and he didn't have any. Cursing himself, Naruto jumped to the nearest rooftop in search for closest convenience store open.

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_Kirigakure; __3:00 pm_

"The alliance proposal has reached Konoha, Rokudaime-sama." a Jounin reported as he stood attention in the middle of the Mizukage office. (this was the same Jounin who gave Tsunade the proposal)

"Good, you're dismissed." the green haired Rokudaime responded.

The Jounin nodded and left through the door, leaving a satisfied Mizukage in the room. Mahiro smiled as she recounted the meeting with the village shinobis. They've more than welcomed her as the Rokudaime and were putting a lot of effort into returning Kiri to its former glory.

A knock on the door caught her attention as she signaled the visitor in. Hiro came through the door with a folder filled with papers.

"I have the information on the other members, Mizukage-sama." he said.

"Please Hiro-kun, you know you can be informal with me." Mahiro chuckled.

"Very well Mahiro-chan." Hiro said as he made his way to her desk, setting down the folder onto it.

Mahiro opened the folder, revealing individual shinobi files, and browsed through them. Hiro decided to speak as she was skimming through the papers, "It seems that Momochi Zabuza and Kurosuki Raiga have passed away. Hoshigaki Kisame has been reported being in Akatsuki, but there have been rumors that he left the organization not too long ago. Finally, both Itada Bontenmaru and Saisei-nechan have disappeared from the map."

"Bontenmaru-san shouldn't be hard to spot, I'm sure if he hears the news that Kiri has a new kage leading them his interest would be piqued. I'm more worried about Saisei-sensei." Mahiro said while frowning at a random Jounin's file.

"Don't worry about neechan, I have an idea on how to get her." Hiro said thoughtfully.

Mahiro raised an eyebrow before putting down the papers she had in her hands, "You do know that finding her isn't hard, it's persuading her."

"Like I said, I have an idea." he said.

"And may I inquire as to how you're going to do it?" the Mizukage asked with interest.

"Let's just say I'm calling in a favor from a friend of mine and we'll leave it at that." he replied with a smile much to the irritation of his Mizukage.

Mahiro pictured herself lunging at him and beating him with a blunt kunai, but pushed those thoughts aside. "I'll let it slide this time Hiro-kun, but watch yourself."

This caused Hiro to pale slightly while laughing nervously at the glare he was getting from his leader.

"Well then, moving on. I want you to go to Konoha to bring back a liaison shinobi that will be staying with us for a while. We can't afford to screw this up, we need an alliance with Konoha to increase trade for the village. That good for nothing Godaime damaged our economy badly and we need every help we can get." she said to him.

Hiro nodded in response, "When do I leave?"

"They expect you there tomorrow, so anytime you want to leave as long as you arrive on time." she replied.

"I see, well then I guess I got to prepare, ja ne!" Hiro said as he disappeared once again in a puff of smoke.

Mahiro stared at the dissipating cloud of smoke before rummaging through the files Hiro handed her once again. Her eyes landed on the files of seven people, the members of the Kiri Shinobigatana Shichinin Shu.

_'Two assured members with myself included, one is a maybe, two are questionable and the other two are dead. This is really going to be a pain in the ass.'_ she groaned.

Grabbing Zabuza's and Raiga's file, she set them aside before stamping them as deceased. That left the Kiri Shinobigatana with two definite openings and another three spots that could be filled in if they were successful in bringing the original members back.

Bontenmaru wouldn't be hard to get back on their side as the only reason he left was because of the Godaime, it was Kisame and Saisei that were worrying her. Both were undoubtedly the two of the three strongest members, Bontenmaru as the third, the only reason that Mahiro was in command of them were because of her strategic and leadership skills.

The green haired Rokudaime was too focused on the papers before her that she didn't notice the form of Jiraiya leaning on one of the walls. The Gama Sennin seeing her distress decided to expose himself.

"You just started being Mizukage and you're already drowned yourself with paperwork. You're too much of a workaholic, Mahiro-chan." he said as he made his way to the kage's desk.

The Rokudaime's head quickly jolted upright in surprise, and in one quick motion, she dropped her papers and unsheathed her sword, pointing it at the Sannin.

"It's just me, calm down." he said, seemingly unfazed.

Mahiro, who composed herself from her initial shock, took a good look at the shinobi in front of her before her eyes widened slightly, "Jiraiya-sama?"

"The one and only!" he exclaimed as he pumped his fist to the air.

"Gomen! I thought it was an intruder." she grinned sheepishly as she sheathed back her sword and relaxed in her chair.

"It's alright, that's what I get for coming in unannounced." He replied as he sat himself down on the couch beside the desk.

"So what brings you here Jiraiya-sama?" she asked as she took out two sake bottles. (It's as if all Kages kept sake in their drawers.)

Taking the bottle Mahiro was offering, Jiraiya took a quick sip before replying, "I actually came here to check up on you. I was here earlier today and heard about a new Mizukage. So I came here and found you burying yourself in papers with that Kage hat resting on your head."

"Well the reason I'm working this hard is because my _predecessor_ has left Kirigakure in shambles." she said as she poured sake into a saucer.

"Yeah, the Godaime was nothing more than a greedy bastard, always looking out for himself and using his position to get what he needs. I'm surprised that Kiri lasted ten years with him as Mizukage." he replied.

"That's why I need to work fast enough to get this village back on its feet. We don't know how long we can last with our current economy, that's why we've sent an alliance proposal to your village." she stated as she downed her saucer.

"Still, you didn't have to take everything all at once. I mean you could've sent the proposal to Konoha tomorrow or later on instead of worrying about it now. Trust me, you'll live longer with less stress." the Sannin said.

"Well, what's done is done, after all we need all the help we can get as soon as possible. Anyway, Jiraiya-sama, I was going to ask for your aid later on this week, but luckily you're here now, so I can cut to the chase. Can I ask you for a favor?" Mahiro asked as she threw away her sake bottle.

"Go on." he replied as he motioned his hand.

"Your spy network covers every single country, shinobi or not am I correct?" she asked inquisitively.

Jiraiya only nodded in response, trying to see where this is going.

"I was wondering if you could find some people for me." she said as she handed him three sets of files.

Jiraiya took the files and looked through them, his eyes slightly widened. "You want to reassemble the Kiri Shinobigatana?"

"Hai. Itada Bontenmaru, Hoshigaki Kisame, and Murakama Saisei. Those three were vital members to the Shichinin Shu, and as of now we have no leads on them. Though Bontenmaru-san would be easy to find along with Saisei-nechan, we don't have enough manpower to look for them because were preoccupied with reforming Kiri." she explained.

The Sannin pondered for a moment before replying, "So you need me to find them because I can cover basically almost every country efficiently and quickly."

"That about sums it up. But don't confront them, I only want their locations." she stated while giving a thoughtful look.

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow, "So you're going to fetch them yourself?"

Mahiro nodded in response, "Hai. It would be best if they hear from another member of the Shinobigatana."

"What about Saisei? She's going to be the most problematic even with you or Hiro." the Sannin asked.

The Rokudaime just smiled as she replied, "Hiro-kun says that he has an idea of how to get her back, and I say we trust him."

Jiraiya just stared at her for a moment before he smiled.

"Good ol' Hiro." he chuckled.

Jiraiya gulped down his sake before throwing it away. He stood up from the couch and made his way to the exit.

"Well, I'm glad to see you're okay, and if that's all you need then I'll be off. I'll stay here for a while for some important business before I catch Hiro on the way back to Konoha." he said with a smile.

"Arigatou Jiraiya-sama. But what's this important business of yours?" she asked with a smile.

The Sannin opened the door and looked back to Mahiro with a mischievous grin, "Research, what else?"

Mahiro's eyebrows twitched as she watched the door close. Female indignation welled up insider her as she clenched her fist and gritted her teeth.

"PERVERT!"

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_Konoha; __7:00 pm_

Naruto walked towards the direction of Ichiraku for a well earned meal after rigorous training. He massaged his left hand as memories of his spar with Gai came into mind. Although he was now stronger than him and was more than capable of beating him in a straight battle, doesn't mean that the green clad Jounin couldn't do some extreme damage.

_'I just had to catch that Five Gates empowered kick didn't I?'_ he thought sarcastically.

He entered Ichiraku and was greeted at the sight of three familiar faces and a rather large dog eating at a nearby table. Naruto approached the table silently with a small smile on his face.

"How's it going Kiba, Shino, Hinata and…Akamaru?" he asked.

The members of team 8 abruptly stiffened before each turning their heads towards the blonde. Naruto just smiled in response while giving a small wave at the team's silence.

Kiba was the first to break the silence, "Naruto! How's it going man? Gone three years and look at you!"

Akamaru barked happily along as if giving his own greeting.

"I could ask the same of you. Nice jacket by the way." he replied while pointing to the leather jacked Kiba now wore.

"Heh, thanks. You don't look too bad yourself, now that you got rid of that hideous eyesore of a jumpsuit." Kiba heartily replied to which Naruto snorted.

"It's good to see you again, Naruto." Shino calmly said.

"Good to see you too Shino, though I almost didn't recognize you there." the blonde sheepishly replied.

Shino only raised an eyebrow before tilting his head slightly as if nodding. Naruto shook his head at the bug users display, Shino will always be Shino.

His eyes turned over to Hinata whose arms were tied with Kiba's, causing him to raise an eyebrow.

"Hello Naruto-kun. Glad to see you're back." She greeted with a smile and surprisingly, without blushing.

"Good to see you too Hinata." Naruto responded as he eyed her and the Inuzuka.

The blonde continued to look between Hinata and Kiba, confusing the two said nins, before speaking with a mischievous tone, "So I see you two have gotten together huh? Hohoho, Kiba you dog I knew you couldn't keep your hormones down for long."

Hinata blushed a nice shade of crimson at his remark, while a flustered Kiba was trying to stutter a retort. Naruto and Shino looked at the couple in amusement for a few minutes before they heard Ayame's voice.

"What can I get for you today Naruto-kun?" she asked warmly.

Hinata and Kiba silently thanked Ayame for taking away the blonde's attention, stopping their moment of awkwardness and embarrassment.

"Give me four bowls of pork ramen for takeout Ayame-chan." he replied with a large smile.

Ayame nodded before entering the kitchen to tell her father of the order. Naruto once again turned his attention to the new couple, much to their dismay.

"So when did this happen?" he asked curiously.

Kiba started to stutter again, and Hinata poked her fingers together while in a blush much like her prior self. Seeing as his teammates won't answer, Shino spoke for them instead.

"It was about a year ago when Kiba actually got the courage to ask her out on a date after a training session with Kurenai-sensei." he explained.

"I see, so did anything interesting happened during the time I was gone between the two?"

"Other than the occasional 'tongue wars', there hasn't been anything interesting. Although there was a time where Kiba fell over Hinata, putting both of them into a compromising position in the presence of Hiashi-sama." he said in a monotone voice.

"How did you know that?!" Kiba shouted incredulously while pointing an accusing finger to his friend as Hinata's blush grew darker.

Shino raised his right index finger and held it out. A kikai bug crawled on top of the finger before it flew off.

"A bug told me." he simply stated.

The Inuzuka's face became flustered again as he sputtered, "You were spying on us?!"

"I was only doing it so I can check up on you two." he replied.

Naruto chuckled at their bickering. Shino seemed to have adopted the 'aniki' role in the group. Though with Kiba and Hinata, Team 8 needed a big brother, and the Aburame seemed to be the best choice. Unfortunately for them, the bug user was a big brother than you can't lie to because the guy had eyes everywhere thanks to his bugs.

Ten minutes passed and Ayame came out of the kitchen holding a box containing four bowls of pork ramen. Naruto, being the ramen freak, caught the scent and quickly appeared next to the register with his wallet out and ready.

"That's about 200 yen Naruto-kun." she smiled as she handed the blonde his order.

Naruto happily accepted his order and handed the payment over to Ayame.

"I'll see you all later!" he yelled as he turned to leave.

"Alright, see ya Naruto." Kiba said as Akamaru barked alongside him.

Shino nodded and Hinata waved at him along with Ayame. Naruto smiled in response as he left the restaurant and headed home.

Something told him that tomorrow was going to be interesting, and when he had these feelings it always tended to be true. The Jinchuuriki looked at his ramen order as hunger claimed him.

Naruto pushed all other thoughts to the side as he increased his pace to his apartment. He hoped to get inside before Kurenai or any of the other kunoichis spots him enter the room next to the Kurenai's. He didn't need Anko barging in his apartment trying to sodomize him at this time of night, or any time at all.

Nope, he didn't need any hot women barging in….nope not him…hot women.….

The blonde Jounin halted himself in his tracks.

_'What the hell am I thinking? It must be because I hanged out with Jiraiya too much. Yeah, that's got to be it. There's no way I'd have thoughts on gorgeous kunoichis…yeah…NO! STOP! BAD THOUGHTS!' _

Naruto started for his apartment once again, this time at a higher pace. He rushed in hopes for a cold shower, Kami-sama knows he needs it.

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(A/N: I know this took a while but my document manager was giving me a hard time. Some people brought up interesting points about my way of writing, and I thank them for their input because it could help me in the long run.)

**Kiri Shinobigatan Shichinin Shu **(Seven Swordsman of the Mist)

**Press the beautiful review button...you know you want to.**


	8. 8: A sense of foreshadowing

Well this chapter took me a while, mainly because I got a little lazy. This is another transition chapter just like chapter 7, but I assure you that the good stuff's coming soon.

**A/N:** Those of you who are asking about the Sharingan. It will come soon so just wait a little longer. You have to note that Naruto wants to keep the fact that he has the Sharingan secret for the time being.

Also this chapter was a bit rushed so I'm saying sorry in advanced if you find it a bit weird.

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**Chapter 8: A sense of foreshadowing**

Crisp clean air, a twilight sky and empty streets was the sight Naruto was greeted as he walked a little groggily towards the Hokage tower for his mission. It was around 6:30 am, a little early for him, but it was better than being late. He continued to walk for a few minutes until he stopped in his tracks as he came upon Konoha's academy. It was still the same in all these years, nothing has changed and he felt a little bit of comfort about that fact. It also reminded him of Iruka, whom he hasn't gotten the chance to see yet.

_'It seems that I'll have to wait for a little while longer before I can see you again Iruka-sensei."_ he inwardly sighed.

With that though, Naruto continued his trek towards the tower in a faster pace. It was useless to think about these thoughts, as he could catch up with his friends later. Right now he had a mission, and unlike his sensei he doesn't like to be late.

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"This is a surprise. I didn't think you'd be here this early. I mean I just got to my office just a half hour ago." Tsunade said to her two guests, Jiraiya and Hiro.

"Well we have Gamabunta and Jiraiya-sama to thank for that." Hiro replied.

"I see…even Jiraiya has his uses some times." she chuckled.

"Yeah, considering he's a lecher." he responded with a grin.

"Yes, to think that a man with a high rank and a notable title would go so low just to appease his primal urges."

"I guess you can't judge a person with their title nowadays. Especially with Jiraiya-sama."

"True, true."

Jiraiya's eyebrow began to twitch as he watched the other two insult him openly with each other. "No respect…no respect at all…"

Tsunade and Hiro continued on with their jeers at Jiraiya for a good five minutes, sending a stab to the Sannin's heart after every joke. Jiraiya was about to protest when he heard a comment about his manhood but was stopped as the office door opened.

Naruto entered looking a little worse for wear as his slightly baggy eyes and droopy face showed his fatigue.

"I'm here for my mission Tsunade-bachan." he yawned slightly.

A vein throbbed in her forehead, but she let the insulting greeting pass, it was after all too early to put man shaped holes in her office walls.

"It's good to see you again Naruto-kun." Hiro greeted.

Naruto's eyes widened for a moment, as he looked towards the raven haired man seated next to the Hokage's desk. His lips formed a smile as he saw his kenjutsu sensei waving at him, "Hiro-sensei! What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing." he asked with curiosity.

"Well I'm here for my mission, something about going to Kiri." he yawned once again.

Hiro's eyes widened before he spoke, "Wait, you're the liaison for Kiri and Konoha?"

"Yeah…wait…how do you know?" the blonde said while he pointed a finger at the Kiri nin.

Hiro stood up from his seat, reaching to one of his vest pockets he pulled out his Kiri headband and tied it onto his right arm. "Well it seems you're coming with me."

Naruto opened his mouth to respond but was cut off by Tsunade. "Naruto, he will be the one bringing you to Kiri."

The blonde Jounin shut his lips as his question was answered and turned his attention to Tsunade.

The Godaime then turned her head towards Hiro. "I think that he should suffice for you, right?"

"Hai! Naruto-kun is a perfect candidate." he said with large grin and a little glee.

"You're rather excited about this Hiro." Jiraiya said, making his presence known…again.

"I was about to ask you if I could take Naruto-kun with me along with the liaison, but seeing that he **is** the liaison it's killing two birds with one stone." the Kiri nin explained.

"Can I ask what was the reason that you needed him?" Tsunade questioned with slight suspicion.

Naruto stayed silent as he watched the conversation between the three. Though he inwardly groaned as he sensed Tsunade's suspicion and doubt of Hiro's motives that included him, she could be too much of a mother hen at times.

"Naruto has a gift with people as you know, it seems that he can change other people's perspectives and can bring them to his side. I was hoping if he could do that to a very dear person of mine." Hiro explained with a sad tone at the end.

Tsunade looked at him in understanding, she was after all one of the people the blonde was able to change for the better. Jiraiya, however, had his eyes the size of a Rasengan as he slowly came to a realization of what he was implying.

"Saisei…" the Sannin said in an almost whisper.

Hiro nodded sadly, leaving the two blondes, Naruto and Tsunade, confused on what was going on. Jiraiya closed his eyes as he pondered on the new information. Naruto could definitely help, being the passionate and kind-hearted man he was, after all he did work wonders with Tsunade. And his student wasn't a pushover either, as he could now probably hold his own against any of the Kiri Shinobigatana if things get violent with their other members, though he hoped it wouldn't come to that.

Jiraiya opened his eyes and gave out a sigh as he massaged his temples. Like Hiro said, Naruto was the perfect candidate for this mission, strong and charismatic to a fault. But if Saisei is involved…

"Listen, whatever Hiro-sensei needs help on I'll do it. We can call it payment for teaching me." Naruto said, breaking the tension in the air.

"But..." Tsuande spoke but was cut off by Naruto.

"I accepted this mission bachaan, and I never go back on what I take. That is after all my nindo." he said with a tone of finality.

The Gama Sannin looked at his apprentice and smiled. Determination was one of his strong points, it always was and will always will be. Though he would soon be dealing with one of the strongest members of the Kiri Shinobigatana, if what Hiro said was true, then Naruto may have bit more than he can chew. But maybe, just maybe he could do it, the blonde always did face incredible odds. With that train of thought, Jiraiya made his choice.

"It's okay Tsunade, Naruto is the logical choice for this mission. I'm sure everything would be fine." the Sannin said confidently.

Tsunade looked to Jiraiya questioningly, seeing the Gama Sannin's seriousness she nodded to her teammates reassurance on her surrogate little brother. It doesn't matter if Naruto was stronger than Kakashi, that didn't mean that she couldn't still be overprotective, but if Jiraiya's confident about his decision, then it should be alright. It **should.** "Alright, Naruto go to the West Gate in half an hour, be ready by then."

"Hai. I'll see you in half an hour Hiro-sensei." Naruto said as he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

A moment of silence passed as the smoke dissipated into the air. Jiraiya sat himself before Tsunade's desk and motioned Hiro to do the same, to which Kiri nin complied.

"Now, care to elaborate on what else you needed from your former, and my current student?" Jiraiya asked.

Hiro sighed as he saw Tsunade's attention focused on him as well, her eyes were staring intensely as if she was interrogating him. He straightened himself up and made himself comfortable before he opened his mouth to reply. This was going to be a long 30 minutes.

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"Food…check. Weapons…check. Reading material…damn…where…ah…check. Clothes…check."

Naruto carefully packed all his necessities into separate bags and sealed them inside a scroll. He liked to pack heavy but travel light, it was a habit that he picked up ever since learning the basics of sealing from Jiraiya. Though he can't call himself a master of seals, or even a competent user, he was satisfied with his current knowledge, it served his needs well. The blonde looked at the clock that read 7:00, cursing under his breath he stuffed the scroll that contained his belongings in his vest pocket and bolted out of his apartment. He threw the front door open and slammed it shut and locked in the same second. As he rushed for the West Gate, he failed to notice a silver haired shinobi in the hallway whom was staring intently at the blonde and the room he came from.

A mischievous glint came to Kakashi's eye as he looked at Naruto's apartment, which was directly next door to Kurenai's.

_'Naruto, living next door to one of the most famous Ice Queens of Konoha, I never expected that. Oh the amount of blackmail I could have. You are a bastard Hatake.'_ he inwardly smirked.

"What are you doing here Kakashi?"

The copy nin turned around to see Kurenai looking at him with slight confusion. Kakashi quickly racked his brain for an answer. What was he doing here in the first place?

"Ah! Hokage-sama has a mission for you, Anko, and Genma. She needs you in her office in an hour." he quickly said in a nonchalant tone.

Kurenai nodded and muttered a 'thanks' before entering her apartment. Kakashi watched as the door closed completely before letting out a sigh. The genjutsu mistress always had a short fuse in the morning, and he didn't want to be in the receiving end of her wrath when she explodes. He experienced it once, and it wasn't something worth repeating.

With that thought, the Sharingan wielder jumped to the rooftop of the bordering building and headed for home. There was little use in pondering these thoughts when he had a new Icha Icha to finish.

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Naruto arrived at the West Gate and saw Hiro, Jiraiya and Tsunade waiting for him. He rubbed the back of his head and smiled sheepishly as he saw Tsunade's slight annoyance for his late appearance.

"Are you all packed Naruto-kun?" Hiro asked questioningly, seeing no bags on the blonde.

"Yeah, I got them packed in a scroll." he replied.

Hiro only nodded in understanding. Naruto suddenly stiffened as he felt Tsunade's arms encircling him in a tight embrace, they stayed together for a minute before coming apart.

"Be safe out there, and don't always go into situations head on like you always do." she said in a tone that befit a worrying mother.

"You worry too much bachaan." Naruto replied, a little peeved at her overprotective nature.

Jiraiya came up to him next and put a hand on his shoulder. "Listen gaki, Kiri is still in the process of re-establishing itself, and from what Hiro said there are still some in Kirigakure that are loyal to the deceased Godaime. So there's a high chance that you'll be forced to battle, and if push come to shove, don't be hesitant to use your doujutsu."

Naruto was about to protest but was stopped as the Sannin looked at him with a dead serious gaze.

"If things do go for the worse, then I will. But only on dire times." the blonde responded in a serious manner.

"That will do." said Jiraiya as he walked back to Tsunade, whom was leaning on the gate.

"Don't worry, I'll keep him in check and make sure he's a good boy." Hiro said, earning him a light glare from Naruto.

The blonde Jounin took one last glance at Konoha, a small smile forming in his lips, but he was tugged from his moment of peace by Hiro.

"It's time."

"Yeah." Naruto said.

With that last word, both nins disappeared in a puff of smoke.

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It was an hour into the journey of nonstop high speed traveling. Naruto looked to Hiro and was surprised when he looked barely winded, then again he was a member of the Kiri Shinobigatana. Their trek continued on for another half hour, both in a comfortable silence.

Hiro pushed extra chakra into his feet as leaped high into the air and looked in the direction of Kiri. Naruto looked at him with a questioning glance but shrugged it off as he continued. The Kiri Shinobigatana member smiled at the thought of home as he smelled the slightly salty air that told them that they were near the shores of Konoha.

But his musings of home were cut short as he felt a chill in his spine.

"Stop right here Naruto-kun." Hiro said as he landed onto a high tree branch.

Naruto complied and landed onto a tree a few meters away, pulsing chakra to his feet to stick onto the wood.

"I need you to summon Gamabunta." the Kiri nin said.

"Why?" the blonde asked in confusion.

"We can make it to Kirigakure faster with Gamabunta than we can with our own two feet. With him, we can make it there before sundown." the Kiri nin explained.

"Are you just giving an excuse just to be lazy?" Naruto asked as he narrowed his eyes.

"Of course not." he said as he crinkled his eyes to a smile in a Kakashi-like manner. Though in the inside he wasn't as cheerful as his exterior. He had, after all, suddenly felt that something bad was about to happen, a sort of premonition. Though he wasn't the superstitious type, every time he got this feeling it always came true in the end, and that was enough for him to trust his gut feeling in times like these.

Naruto, unaware of Hiro's inner thoughts, drew blood from his thumb as he went through seals for summoning.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

A large amount of smoke burst fort, hiding the blonde from sight. As the smoke fanned out into the open air, Naruto found himself on top of the boss of all toads, Gamabunta.

**"What do you need gaki?" **he said in his raspy voice.

"I need you to take me to Kiri, and I need you to do it fast." the blonde said.

**"What am I now, a royal carriage? First Jiraiya and now you, you two have no respect at all."** the toad replied in a peeved tone as he puffed out smoke from his pipe.

"Gamabunta, please." Hiro asked in a serious and pleading manner.

The toad looked at Hiro in the eyes and saw anxiety and a sliver of worry. Their staring match lasted for a minute before Gamabunta took another puff from his pipe.

"**Fine. But their better be a good reason."** he said, conceding to their request.

Hiro smiled gratefully as he jumped up on Gamabunta's head next to Naruto.

**"Make sure to get a good grip, because this is going to be a bumpy ride."** the toad said as his hind legs readied for a jump.

Before even getting a confirmation from Naruto or Hiro, Gamabunta took a leap into the air and headed for their destination at full speed.

Hiro gripped tightly onto Gamabunta's jacket as the toad raced through Hi no Kuni ( Land of Fire). Hoping that this feeling was just that, a feeling and nothing more.

His grip tightened as he peered to the direction of his home once again, he'll find out soon enough.

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"So you not only failed in killing the traitors but also failed to bring the Nibi Jinchuuriki." spoke a shadowed figure.

"We were careless and we paid for it. It will not happen again shishou." Zetsu said.

The leader of Akatsuki stayed silent as he closed his eyes in thought. Zetsu continued to look at his master, awaiting for further orders. The shadowed figure opened his eyes as he spoke again. "Do not worry about it for now. We have six of the nine bijuus, with only the Ichibi, Nibi and Kyuubi left. It will only be a matter of time before we have them too."

"As you say, shishou. But what about the traitors? They have taken with them the rings necessary for the extraction, we are now missing four." Zetsu stated.

The leader looked at him and pulled out a ring and tossed it to the Grass nukenin. "Give that to your subordinate, it is time to make him a member. That ring as you know formerly belonged to Orochimaru before we retrieved it from him half a year ago. Make sure that we don't lose that ring this time."

"And what of the traitors?" the Grass nin asked.

"I shall deal with him myself." he replied as he disappeared completely into darkness of the Akatsuki base.

Suddenly a scroll shot out from the shadows and was caught by Zetsu.

"That is your next assignment." the leader's voice rang through out the room.

The Grass nukenin opened the scroll as he began to read, his eyes widened as he read the first few words.

**'PROPOSAL OF PARTNERSHIP' **

His continued to read for a minute before closing the scroll, having read all its contents. Zetsu turned around and slowly disappeared into the dark depths of the base, preparing to leave for his newest task.

"Otogakure…"

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Gamabunta leaped on the surface of the ocean water in the direction towards Kiri. The toad looked at the sky to see that it was late in the afternoon, at this pace they would make it before nightfall.

Naruto was sitting on top of the boss toad's head, gripping himself on the slippery skin through chakra. Next to him was Hiro who kept silent during the journey, though the blonde didn't know why but he kept it to himself, not wanting to bother his kenjutsu sensei from his thoughts.

An hour of hopping passed and they could see the outline of Kirigakure in front of them. Seeing their destination, Gamabunta fastened the pace with renewed vigor. They were now only a few miles away from hitting shore, but that's when the boss toad smelled a peculiar scent, the scent of smoke.

The giant toad quickly raised his head in the direction of Kiri only to see vague pillars of gray smoke rising from land.

"Damn it...I hate it when I'm right." Hiro cursed as he saw the smoke originating from his village.

"Gamabunta we need to land now!" Naruto commanded with a hint of anxiousness.

The boss toad ignored the blonde's rude attitude and complied as he took one last giant leap. Gamabunta landed onto the shore with a loud crash and a slight tremor. Naruto groaned, they just basically announced their arrival to possible enemy shinobis. Hiro, on the other hand only dropped down onto the shores quickly. The blonde followed suit and he waved to Gamabunta as the toad dispelled himself.

"Hurry Naruto-kun! It's five minutes to the village from here!" Hiro said as he hopped rapidly from tree to tree.

Naruto picked up his pace and followed his sensei, the smell of smoke getting stronger as they neared the village. He peered to the foliage up ahead and saw that the forest end was only a hundred meters away. Hiro seemed to also notice this as he quickened his speed again, with Naruto following suit also.

Jumping from the branch of the last tree, they found themselves in a clearing with a dirt road, though it was barely visible because of the fog that shrouded the area. Hiro followed the dirt road with Naruto trailing behind. The road was an uphill path that led to one of the two gates in Kirigakure if memory served him correctly, and as they got higher they were greeted by mist that continued to get thicker. The blonde Jinchuuriki pushed some chakra in his eyes as he trudged forward, with the extra chakra giving him a slightly clearer view. The smell of smoke was nearly overwhelming now, which means the village was close by.

Naruto abruptly stopped as he found himself at the village entrance. Hiro was standing in the middle silently as he seemed to be transfixed by something. The blonde went next to his sensei and stared at the village only to receive a surprise.

The village was in chaos, it was the only word that would explain the scene before him. Nearly half of it seemed to be on fire and there were shinobis and kunoichis in almost every direction. His eyes spotted a group heading towards him and Hiro, their numbers totaled to eleven.

The eleven shinobis landed a few meters away from the two, eyeing them with a critical eye. Hiro and Naruto looked at them and saw Kiri headbands with a slash mark cut through horizontally.

"A renegade…" Hiro said in a low voice.

"Surrender yourselves." a shinobi with blue hair and three scars running across his face sneered.

"And if we don't?" Naruto asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Then you must be terminated, in the name of the Godaime." another one answered.

Hiro drew his katana and set himself in a stance. Naruto did the same as he formed Kaze no Rasenyaiba, surprising his opponents.

**"Let's see about that."**

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**Kuchiyose no Jutsu (**Summoning Technique)

The next chapter should be more exciting, action-wise.

**A/N: **Once again, like I always said, reviews are a nice thing to give.


	9. 9: Legacies of a tyrant

**A/N: **Sorry I haven't updated in a while, SATs were sort of top priority.

For those asking my about the Sharingan, I'll say it again. The eyes will come out soon, very soon actually because I planned for Naruto to use it during his time in Kiri.

As for the Akatsuki leader, I have my plans on what to do with him, along with who and what he is. So I'll have to keep you guys in the dark on this one, sorry.

Finally, those that got confused when I mentioned 'renegade' in the last chapter I'm sorry. 'Renegade' is another word for those who went rogue, or became traitor, or in other words 'missing-nins'.

**Early translations:**

**nukenin **(missing-nin)

**Rasenyaiba **(spiral blade)

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**Chapter 9: Legacies of a tyrant**

Naruto stood his ground as the group of eleven shinobis charged, dividing themselves into two separate units, six heading to Hiro and the remaining five coming straight at him. The blonde looked at his opponents, all of them with a look of confidence that nearly borderline arrogance. Did they think that just because he was younger that he was an easier target? Naruto inwardly smirked at that thought, they would soon find out that underestimating him would be their _last_ mistake.

Taking the initiative, Naruto shunshined in front of the nearest enemy nin, a middle aged man that seemed to be the rank of Jounin as his uniform indicated. The sudden appearance of the blonde stopped the man in his tracks for a second, but that was enough. Before anyone could assess the situation, Naruto vertically swung Rasenyaiba, splitting the Jounin in half. The remains of the corpse skidded on the ground for a few meters, due to the man's momentum prior to his death, and stopped a little ways away from the forest opening.

"!!"

"What the hell?!" exclaimed one of his opponents, as the remaining four made some distance between Naruto and themselves. All of their confidence now replaced by shock and slight fear of the current display of skill the young leaf nin displayed.

"Idiots. You should never take anything at face value." Naruto replied coolly with a serious expression. Setting himself in his former stance, he readied himself for another attack. "Your friend paid the price of being an idiot in the battlefield."

There was a moment of silence, before it was broken by slight laughter from the blonde's enemies, causing the said nin to raise an eyebrow.

"Friend? Feh, like you said kid, he was an idiot. But it seemed that he made himself useful by being canon fodder. Now we know what you're capable of, we won't make the same mistake." Another one of his enemies, a Jounin, replied in a nonchalant voice, confidence seeping back into the four nukenins.

Naruto inwardly seethed at the nin's response. Did the man not feel a twinge of sorrow for a comrade? The blonde looked again at the man's face only to see cold, calculating eyes. No…the man didn't, and that only made the blonde angrier. He couldn't help it, no matter how indifferent he tried to become, he just couldn't help but feel this way to people who didn't give a damn about others, it was in his nature.

"So he meant nothing to any of you?" Naruto asked in a calm manner, contradicting his inner thoughts.

There was no response, but the small smirks on their facades were a good enough answer. The leaf nin wanted nothing more than to wipe those expressions from their faces, but through use of willpower, the blonde remained calm, knowing that getting angry would do nothing but hinder his judgment.

"Enough, die brat!" the eldest of the four, a man that looked to be in his early forties yelled as he charged at Naruto, kunais in hand.

The elder nin threw the projectiles with a faster speed than the blonde predicted, slightly surprising the said nin. Letting instincts take over, Naruto leaped backwards, avoiding the metal weapons, and landing a few meters away from his former spot.

Sensing another oncoming attack, the Jinchuuriki quickly ducked down right before a katana flew by his head, cutting of a few strands of his golden hair. Naruto looked at the attacker, recognizing him as the man he recently conversed with. The leaf Jounin gritted his teeth in anger, he made a silent promise that the Jounin dies painfully.

At the corner of his eyes the blonde spotted another one of his enemies, a Chuunin, forming seals. Switching over his first priorities to the Chuunin, Naruto quickly dashed at him before the nin finished.

The said Chuunin frantically sped through his seals, in hopes of initiating his attack. His lips formed into a smile as his hands formed the last seal, inhaling moisture from the air he began his jutsu.

"Suiton: Suir-!"

The nukenin wasn't given time to finish as he found himself impaled through the chest with a blade of wind. The man looked at Naruto in shock before his arms limped down lifelessly as blood poured from his chest wound. More blood spilled from his mouth, while his eyes rolled back, and his body fell to the ground, dead.

"Die!" shouted a voice from above.

Naruto looked to the skies, his eyes locked on the form of an opponent descending down with a katana set to strike. A small smile crossed the blonde's lips, the man, who he identified was the one who threw the kunais at him earlier, was obviously an amateur with a sword, as his poor form has indicated. He sidestepped the attack and countered with an upward diagonal strike of his Rasenyaiba, severing the man's head from his body. Naruto winced at the sight of his kill, a beheaded corpse was rather unsettling scenery after all.

'_Two left' _he thought, taking his mind away from the headless nin.

The Jinchuuriki surveyed the area, and saw no sign of his enemies. Naruto set himself in a defensive stance, waiting for his opponents to come to him. He wasn't disappointed as his senses picked up one of his attackers charging at him from his left side. The blonde's eyes darted towards his opponent, it was the Jounin he promised himself he'd kill in a not-so-painless way. The nukenin was rushing towards him with kunais in both hands, seemingly going for a close range strike, an irrational move to the leaf nin's opinion.

Though before Naruto could do anything else, a chakra signature flared behind him, catching his attention. Turning his head, he saw his last opponent, a Chuunin, making seals on a much more rapid rate than the other he had slain earlier.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu!" On cue, a rapid torrent of water burst forth from his mouth in the form of a dragon, rapidly making its way on the blonde.

Naruto stood calmly, assessing his current predicament, a two pronged attack. He looked at the water dragon that was making its way to him at an alarming rate, his eyes then wandered to the nukenin who was closing the gap between them in a slightly slower speed.

A smirk crossed the blonde's lips as an idea came to mind. He deactivated Rasenyaiba, surprising his two opponents, and without indication of movement, blurred from sight.

Naruto reappeared behind the charging Jounin, catching the man off guard the blonde grabbed both of his arms in a tight hold and held him in place.

"What the hell are you doing kid?!" the Jounin yelled frantically as he struggled to free himself in vain.

The leaf Jinchuuriki flashed him a feral grin, unnerving his opponent. "I made a promise to myself that I'd make you die in a very painful way."

The sound of rapidly moving water reached the Jounin's ears. The enemy nin looked upwards and saw his comrade's water jutsu crashing down towards them…no him. The jutsu was quickly crossing the space between them, twenty meters, fourteen meters, eight meters…one meter.

"I never go back on my promises."

Those were the final words the nukenin heard before the water missile slammed into him dead on. The massive water pressure broke the majority of his bones and tore open his flesh like paper upon impact. The Jounin silently screamed as his whole body erupted in pain, his blood dyeing the water red, while inside his bones continued to crack and shatter. Naruto pumped chakra to his arms and legs, holding his ground and his hold on the man as he let the jutsu ravage him.

The ordeal lasted for six seconds, but that was an eternity for the Jounin nukenin. The blonde leaf nin released his hold, letting the man fall to the ground and bleed, he fulfilled his promise.

He turned his attention to his last opponent, who looked at him and his recently fallen comrade in shock. Seeing the man off guard, the blonde discreetly and quickly flew through his own set of seals.

"Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu" (think of the same type that Itachi used against Kakashi in Shippuden/Arc II)

A massive fireball shot towards the Chuunin, shaking him from his shock. The last nukenin made a move to dodge to the right, but found himself held in place. The man looked at his feet and found a set of hands gripping his legs in a tight bind.

'_Shit! A doton jutsu! When did he-!' _His thoughts were cut short as he felt the increasing, intense heat radiating from oncoming katon jutsu.

Thinking quickly, the Chuunin frantically flashed through seals for a counter.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu!" he cried out once again.

A small stream of water with a barely definable shape shot out, but evaporated upon impact. The nukenin gaped at the result and inwardly cursed himself for not taking into account the lack of moisture in the air before he began his jutsu.

From the other side of the flaming projectile, Naruto grinned as he heard the Chuunin counter his jutsu in vain. He pumped more chakra than necessary to that jutsu, adding an extra kick to it. Add to the fact that the current jutsu was shot at a near distance from the target, evaporating all nearby moisture around the Chuunin, making available water for suiton scarce since there was no bodies of water near the vicinity. If there's not much water to combat his katon jutsu, then the man's suiton jutsu was useless, even with the elemental advantage. It was like trying to extinguish a forest fire with only one bucket of water.

He silently thanked Jiraiya for pounding logic into him.

The leaf Jinchuuriki was cut from his musings as he heard a scream of agony in the direction of his enemy, which lasted for a few seconds before it died and was replaced by silence. Letting his jutsu disperse, he found the lifeless body of the Chuunin covered in burns and a majority of his skin in ashes.

Naruto took a moment, his eyes gazing over the five men he killed. Closing his eyes, he offered a silent prayer before leaving the scene to search for Hiro.

The blonde spotted his kenjutsu sensei a little ways inside the village, passed the village gates, finishing off his share of opponents.

No wait…

"ARGH!!"

…he was done.

Hiro took out his sword from the dead nukenin's chest, letting the nin fall lifelessly to the ground. With a quick swing, he expelled the excess blood from his blade before wiping it off on a piece of clothing that he tore off from one of his fallen enemies.

"Not bad for a warm-up." Hiro said as he sheathed his blade.

"Yeah." came a half-hearted reply.

The Kiri nin looked at his one time student, and saw slight sadness in the blonde's eyes. Quirking an eyebrow, the older nin examined his friend and saw a few blood stains on his clothing but no sign of inflicted wounds. Hiro's eyes softened in understanding, "Was this the first time you killed, Naruto-kun?"

"No…but it doesn't make it any easier." The leaf nin replied with a slightly downcast face.

A minute of silent understanding passed between the two, before the Kiri nin put a reassuring hand on the blonde's shoulder, "It's best not to think about these type of things. Instead, we need to focus on the matter at hand, and I can't afford to have you distracted."

Naruto looked at his older friend, before nodding in agreement. Hiro nodded back and took his hand off the blonde's shoulder. His attention turned on the dead nin beside him. The Shinobigatana member kneeled down to the nukenin he currently impaled and tore off his vest and shirt and began to examine him.

"Hiro-sensei…what…the…hell?" Naruto said in a tone that expressed his uneasiness.

"What I'm doing is…Ah! Here it is." Hiro replied, pointing to an elaborate tattoo of a serpent like creature constricted by numerous chains, imprinted on man's upper left part of the chest near the shoulders.

"What is that?" the blonde asked, observing the mark closely, his uneasiness now replaced with curiosity.

"The mark of the 'chained hydra' identifies the Godaime Mizukage's personal servants." the Kiri nin stated.

"Personal…servants?"

"To be precise, they're loyal shinobis who devoted themselves to the Godaime." Hiro explained.

"Loyal shinobis? From what you told me, the former Mizukage was a greedy, ambitious tyrant. I don't know anyone that would devote themselves to someone like him" Naruto said in a confused tone.

"I can explain the details later, right now we need to get further in the village. If 'Hydra' really is the enemy then it's not as bad as I first thought. Follow me." Hiro said with a tone of finality.

With that said, the Kiri nin hopped onto the nearest roof, with Naruto following suit, both heading to the center of the village, where the Mizukage's tower was located. As they made their way in, the blonde noticed the majority of the fires he saw earlier have been extinguished, which Hiro also noted as they continued on.

'_I don't see anyone. None of our shinobis nor the nukenins. What's going on here?'_ Hiro thought as the lack of present shinobis slightly disturbed him.

With one last leap, the duo landed on an open road in front of the large structure where the Mizukage supposedly resided, the Kage's tower.

The two landed onto the concrete pavement near the tower. Both nins continued their trek on foot and within a minute found themselves in front of the entrance of their destination. Hiro stepped forward towards the door, but was stopped as the two were quickly surrounded by two dozen Anbu, all armed and ready.

'_An ambush?!'_ Hiro inwardly exclaimed, cursing himself for at his carelessness.

Within a tenth of a second, both him and his blonde companion set themselves in ready stances, prepared for an attack from every angle.

A gust of wind flew by, blowing dust and leaves around the area, yet none made a move. Hiro raised an eyebrow on the odd behavior their ambushers' showed, none of them displaying any hostilities. To his further confusion, their supposed opponents sheathed back their weapons.

"Forgive us Hiro-sama, we mistook you for an enemy." a crow masked Anbu said as the nin bowed, followed by the rest of the Anbu members.

Hiro let out a breath of relief, "It's alright Naruto, they're on our side."

The blonde relaxed and straightened out his posture. Looking around, he found many of the Anbu fixated on him, causing him to raise an eyebrow.

"Hiro-sama, what is a shinobi from Konoha doing here?" a female, panda masked Anbu asked, pointing to Naruto.

The Shinobigatana member smiled sheepishly in response, "Ah yes, this is Uzumaki Naruto, a Konoha Jounin and the current liaison between Konoha and Kiri."

"Jounin? He looks no older than sixteen." an Anbu with a shark mask exclaimed.

Hiro's face turned serious, largely contrasting his earlier happy smile and slightly taking aback some of the Anbu who have not seen the said nin's current facial expression before. "He may be young, but he is stronger the Hatake Kakashi of the Sharingan and is currently the apprentice of Jiraiya-sama of the Sannin. Do not underestimate him."

If Anbu masks could be see through, then the duo would have seen the shocked looks from all of the gathered Anbu. Jiraiya of the Sannin and Hatake Kakashi were known far and wide, both being powerful shinobis of the Leaf. To think that the blonde in front of them was a student of the former, and stronger than the latter was surprising to say the least.

"Stronger than…Hatake Kakashi?" asked another female Anbu in disbelief.

"Yes, according to what Jiraiya-sama has told me, Naruto-kun defeated Kakashi-san in a battle to achieve the rank of Jounin." Hiro explained.

The gathered Anbu gawked at Naruto, many in surprise, many in awe, but all of them showed respect, but the blonde just couldn't see them with those masks on.

"Don't we have more important matters, Hiro…_san_?" Naruto coughed, changing the suffix of '-sensei' to '-san' as to not arouse any more unneeded questions.

The change of suffix did not go unnoticed by Hiro, to which the Kiri nin mentally smiled for his friend's quick thinking. "Yes we do. Can anyone explain what happened while I was gone?"

The crow masked shinobi, seemingly an Anbu captain, answered. "Mizukage-sama sent out the majority of our ninjas to missions between four to six hours ago, lowering our security. It seemed that the remaining members of 'Hydra' used this to their advantage and did a preemptive strike roughly about three hours from now."

"That's understandable…but the damage I've seen on the village seems a little extensive. Don't tell me our forces weren't able to intercept in time?" Hiro asked, motioning his hands towards the pillars of smoke in the air.

"The fires were from numerous explosive tags that were carried en masse by four 'Hydra' members posing as merchants. They did a suicide bombing, setting fire to many heavily populated areas. Mizukage-sama ordered for every available ninja to gather the civilians first and get them to safety before we engage the enemy." The panda masked female Anbu spoke.

"I see, so she evacuated the civilians first huh? That'd explain why many of the exterior buildings seem damaged. Hmm…so where is Mahiro-chan now?"

"Mizukage-sama has taken twenty five Chuunins and fifteen Jounins with her, along with the genins whom are tending the wounded and taking care of menial tasks, to the East side of the village along with the civilians. She insists on taking charge of the evacuation and protection of the people." The shark Anbu replied, hoping to redeem himself for his earlier foolish comment on the blonde leaf nin.

"Twenty five Chuunins and fifteen Jounins? That's quite a number, exactly how many 'Hydra' members attacked to make Mahiro-chan take that many?" asked the Kiri swordsman, surprise evident from his voice.

"At first, there were about two hundred and fifty, all ranging from low Chuunin to high Jounin. Now they have roughly about a hundred and twenty remaining." Another Anbu stated.

"And how many of our own forces remain, excluding those absent prior to the attack?"

"We had about four hundred, including the eighty genins. Twenty six Chuunins and ten Jounins have been reported as KIA, while we have forty wounded, mainly genins who were attacked when the evacuation started." The crow Anbu captain replied. "At the moment, the West and North sides of the village are where our forces are engaging the majority of 'Hydra', our squadron were sweeping through the South side before we spotted you, sir."

Hiro closed his eyes in thought, a few seconds passed before he re-opened them again and looked at the crow Anbu captain. "Captain, I request to take six members from your platoon."

The crow Anbu wasted no time and nodded his head in an affirmative. "Very well, Hiro-sama."

The Kiri swordsman looked at Naruto before giving his instructions. "Naruto, I want you to take three Anbus with you, just choose which. Go the West side, they can lead you there. I will take the other three to the North."

The Konoha Jounin replied with a 'hai', before looking around at the assembled Anbu. It was at this time that he saw the difference with Konoha's Anbu and Kiri's. Both were similar in uniform, with the only difference being that instead of black they were a dark indigo. Their masks were also identical to Konoha's, though instead of red markings, it was replaced by the same indigo color of their outfits.

Clearing his mind, he focused on his task, choosing a team...which proved harder than he thought. After a second observation and numerous ponderings later, the blonde sighed and decided to go with his instinct on this one.

"I'll take…panda….shark…and…swallow. You three come with me." The blonde commanded, receiving a nod from the three.

The Anbu members stood aside as the leaf Jinchuuriki examined them. Panda, he noted was definitely a kunoichi from her obvious assets, but the way she carried herself gave of an air of experience, and how her nodachi was placed near perpendicular to her back, a position for easier access, gave an indication of that she has knowledge on the sword. He was reminded of Tenten, the kenjutsu specialist of Konoha, maybe this Anbu member was a weapon mistress too?

Swallow, another kunoichi, seemed to be a long range expert, from what the extra shuriken pouches showed. Other than that, there was no other apparent trait that he saw was out of the ordinary.

'_Maybe she's a jutsu or Genjutsu expert'_ the blonde inwardly thought, whilst taking a thoughtfully pose.

His eyes finally rested on Shark, the only male of the three. The leaf nin noticed that unlike his peers, Shark didn't have a nodachi equipped, and only had two kunai holsters equipped on him, no shuriken pouch in sight. A taijutsu user perhaps?

"Swallow, can you take lead?" Naruto asked.

"Hai" was the answer he received.

The leaf Jounin then looked to Hiro, who had just finished picking his own squad. "Hiro-san, I'm going on ahead."

The Kiri swordsman only nodded in response. Receiving an affirmative, the group of four disappeared onto the rooftops, with Swallow up front and the rest following suit.

"Captain, when you're finished your sweep of the southern area I want you to deliver a message to Mahiro-chan of my arrival." Hiro said to the crow Anbu as he watched the four depart.

"Hai, Hiro-sama."

"Then I shall take my leave now." With that said, the Kiri swordsman disappeared, with his Anbu squad following behind.

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"We're entering the West section now, Uzumaki-san." Swallow reported as they dashed through rooftops of untouched buildings.

Naruto moved closely next to her, making the female Anbu blush slightly, though it couldn't be seen. The blonde could sense chakra flaring from numerous directions, indicating the use of jutsus, mainly northeast from his current position. Deciding to take charge, Naruto sped towards the nearest chakra signatures, with the three Anbu right behind him.

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"Suiton: Hahonryu!"

"Suiton: Suikodan no Jutsu!"

A massive blast of water shot forth, only to be countered with another force of water in the form of a shark. A large explosion of liquid soon followed, before the water subsided and cleared. Two shinobis could be seen kneeling on the ground, both breathing heavily and covered in injuries from their current battle. On one side was a large, tall Jounin with a slash on his Kiri head band. The other nin was also a Jounin, though a few years younger, and his headband didn't bear the mark of a nukenin.

A little ways farther from the two was another battle, a Chuunin and Jounin of Kiri, against unfavorable odds of two Jounin nukenins. The Kiri nin could hear the occasional clash of metal, and the sounds of jutsus being used not too far behind him, the only indication he had that his comrades were still alive.

'_Dammit, we don't have anything to call for reinforcements…kuso!'_ the nin inwardly cursed.

An familiar agonized scream pierced the air, filling the Kiri nin with dread. His head turned in time to see his Chuunin comrade, his friend, die at the hands of the enemy. His body falling to the ground as the enemy's kunai remained embedded into his heart, blood spilling freely from his mouth. The Jounin's eyes widened in shock before narrowing into a glare, clenching his fist in anger he rose and prepared to attack his friend's killer.

"Don't turn your back on the enemy." A rough voice behind him said.

The Kiri nin's head snapped back to the direction of his current opponent, only to be met with a fist. The chakra enhanced strike slammed him to the concrete wall of a store, shattering the nearby display glass.

The nin groaned in pain and pushed his body to stand, but his efforts were in vain as he collapsed to the ground, his body reaching its limit from the ongoing battle with the nukenins.

'_S-shit...I got careless...' _The fallen Kiri nin clenched his right fist, anger and sadness clearly visible on his visage. _'I couldn't save you…Gojyo…I'm sorry.'_

"Don't worry, you'll join your friend soon enough." The nukenin laughed, as he slowly advanced towards the collapsed Kiri nin, relishing his opponent's defeated form.

The Kiri nin shifted his head and glared at the larger man, his eyes showing cold fury, which only added to the man's laughter.

"Don't be angry at me. You should be angry at your friend for being weak." The nukenin said as his hands slowly formed seals. A wicked grin crossed the man's lips as his hands rested on the final seal.

"You put up a good fight, but now it's time to die punk. Sui-"

"Katon: Karyu Endan!"

A large jet of flames engulfed the large nukenin, resulting in a screech of pain. The flames continued to ravage the man for a few seconds before it died out, leaving only a large, burned corpse.

The last thing the fallen Kiri Jounin saw was a mop of blonde hair belonging to a shinobi dressed in blue with three whisker marks on the cheeks, before his eyes closed as unconsciousness claimed him.

The Naruto's arrival caught the other three Jounins' attention, their eyes then shifting over to the charred remains of the nukenin's comrade. The remaining loyal Kiri nin, a kunoichi in her early twenties with long blue hair, breathed a sigh of relief as she realized the newly arrived nin was an ally.

"Feh, just a kid, here I thought that the good for nothing Rokudaime sent out the Anbu." One of the nukenins, a short, blue haired man in his late thirties, said.

"Let's take care of the brat first, then we'll kill the bitch." The other nukenin, a man with shaggy hair and of equal age, said as he pointed to the mildly injured Kiri kunoichi, whom they were recently fighting.

The two in agreement, leapt towards the blonde Jinchuuriki, shurikens and kunais clutched in hand.

"Watch out!" The female Jounin exclaimed, trying to run to the blonde to help, but her body jerked and forced her to the ground, as the wounds inflicted by the two nukenins took its toll. Her heart sank as she saw the two nukenins advance to the whisker marked nin, with the latter not taking any action.

She continued to watch, all the while cursing herself for her helplessness. That's when she saw it. A flash of yellow and blue emanated from where the blonde stood, before disappearing as quickly as it came. The female Jounin squinted her eyes, momentarily blinded from the sudden flash of color.

The two nukenins came to view, but the blonde was nowhere in sight. Then without warning, the two middle aged nins slumped to the ground, a pool of blood slowly forming on the concrete road.

The kunoichi scanned the area for any signs of her savior, but found nothing. A dejected sigh escaped her lips, she didn't even get to thank him. Shaking her head, she tried to push herself up, but her wounds and exhaustion kept her from succeeding.

She sighed again, realizing her efforts were in vain.

A hand presented itself in front of her, momentarily surprising the female Kiri nin. Turning her head, she looked at the handsome cerulean eyed teen before her, the very same one she recognized had saved her and her teammate. She took the hand with gratitude, and with a slow but strong pull from the blonde, got back on her feet.

"Arigatou…um…"

"Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto, Jounin liaison from Konoha." he said with a small smile.

The kunoichi raised an eyebrow in interest, before shrugging it off and setting it for a later time. "Yuna Ayase, Jounin."

"Are you alright?." Naruto asked sincerely.

Before she could reply, three Anbu members leapt down from nearby rooftops, landing right next to them.

"Uzumaki-san, we would appreciate it if you refrained from _ditching _your squad in the future." said the female panda masked Anbu in an annoyed tone.

Naruto nodded sheepishly before turning around and looked at the unconscious Jounin and the dead Chuunin. Before he could go to them, Yuna beat him to it as she rushed over to her teammates, with the blonde trailing behind. The leaf nin kneeled down next to the kunoichi, whom was observing her remaining live friend, whilst casting glances to her dead teammate.

"He's stable." Yuna said with relief.

With that said, Naruto took the man by the arm and hung him on his shoulder.

"Is there anywhere near here where this guy can get taken care of properly?" he asked, pointing to the unconscious nin on his shoulder.

"There's a small medical tent base a few blocks from here that our group was heading to before we were ambushed." Yuna said, pointing west.

"Good. Shark can you carry the other guy?" the leaf nin asked, pointing to the deceased Chuunin. The said Anbu complied and took out the embedded kunai from the deceased nin and closed the wound with a piece of cloth, before putting the corpse on his shoulders as well.

"Gojyo-kun…" Yuna muttered under her breath, a tear running down her cheek as she ran a hand through the young Chuunin's fiery red hair.

"Yuna-san…" Naruto said, his voice soft yet with an air of command. "I don't know how it feels to see a teammate die, but I know it hurts. But we have more important things to do right now. You're other friend might die as well if we don't get him the proper attention."

Upon hearing those words, Yuna snapped out of her reverie, quickly wiping the tear from her cheek. She looked at Naruto in understanding, to which the blonde was glad. The leaf nin gave her a reassuring smile and turned to his Anbu squad, all of them awaiting further orders.

"Let's go."

The second those words left his lips, the group disappeared into the distance with the life of a ninja in their hands.

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**Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu **(Water Release: Water Dragon Missile)

**Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu **(Fire Release: Grand Fireball)

**Katon: Karyu Endan **(Fire Release: Fire Dragon Missile)

**Suiton: Hahonryu **(Water Release: Rapid Crasher)

**Suiton: Suikodan no Jutsu **(Water Release: Water Shark Missile)

Next chapter should be a bit interesting, if I can get my lazy self to start writing it. Sorry, but sitting in a room for six hours on SAT sucked me dry. It was a feat in itself just to start writing this chapter.

Reviews are nice as always.


	10. 10: Unexpected lesson

**A/N: **Yes I know I haven't updated in a while. Mainly because of finals, but that's done now. Also this chapter may be a little weird because I was a bit off when I wrote it. When I uploaded something went strange with the quotation marks. So bear with me here. By the way, the Sharingan would probably come into a large role in the chapter after the next, so for those who are wanting the doujutsu being used, you can expect that soon enough.

I'd also appreciate some feedback about the action scenes in this chapter, I need some opinions on whether Naruto's fight with Kakashi is better than the fights here. That way I can improve later fighting scenes.

If anyone can give me Tsunade's family name I'd be very thankful. I have uses for that piece of info.

**Jutsu translations at the bottom.**

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**Chapter 10: Unexpected lesson**

"You're annoying!" Naruto shouted for the third time as he stabbed a Rasenyaiba through an enemy nin's throat, killing his seventeenth opponent upon arriving in Kiri. The Hydra member was nothing really but an average Chuunin, but being the seventeenth nukenin to pop out of the woodwork and attack him on sight slightly put off him off.

"This is just…soo…"

"Uzumaki-san! A large group of Hydra has been sighted heading for the medical base! The Chuunin scouts say there's at least forty." One of his 'temporary' teammates, the Kiri panda Anbu reported as she landed on a nearby lamppost.

"…troublesome." The blonde finished with an exasperated sigh.

"Uzumaki-san."

Naruto's eyebrows twitched in annoyance; can't they give him a break for even a few minutes?

"Uzumaki-san!" the female Anbu called again, a little frustration now present in her voice.

Guess not.

"All right, all right! Panda, go back to the base and have Shark, Swallow and all other available shinobis to set up a defense." The whisker marked teen said in surrender.

"What about you?" the Anbu kunoichi asked, slightly tilting her head to the side.

Naruto's eyes narrowed in thought, before replying. "I'll intercept them."

"But-!"

The blonde ignored her and continued. "It's possible that those guys could be just a diversion to lead us away from the medical base. So I'll go to them while you take charge of the base, it's for the best."

"At least take some of our shinobis with you."she reasoned.

"I'll be fine, you worry too much." Naruto said with his patented grin.

"But you'll be greatly outnumbered! It's suicide!" the female Anbu spoke more forcefully.

"Outnumbered yeah, but not _outclassed._" the leaf nin said, adding a quick flare of his chakra for emphasis.

The kunoichi was slightly taken aback by the display, before inwardly berating herself for fogetting that the blonde teen greatly surpassed her in power.

"At least be careful." she said worriedly.

Naruto once again flashed her a grin before replying. "I told you, you worry way too much. I'll live, I promise."

The panda Anbu nodded and turned to leave, but was stopped as the blonde called out to her.

"Wait!"

The kunoichi turned around in time to see an object being thrown to her. Upon instinct, her hand shot forth and snatched the projectile in mid-air. It was an odd, three pronged kunai with seals engraved into the handle. She eyed the unusual kunai with curiosity, examining every angle of the metal projectile.

"When you're in trouble, throw that kunai to any hard surface and I'll be there. I know this sounds a bit weird, but trust me on this one. Though I hope you don't have to use it." The blonde explained.

"Thank you Uzumaki-san, I'll keep that in mind. Be safe." The Anbu bowed slightly before disappearing from the lamppost.

----------------------------------

Naruto silently cursed as he saw the tiny silhouettes of the approaching Hydra members in the distance.

_'Forty my ass!' _he thought bitterly as he spied the oncoming masses of shinobis.

The blonde leapt to another rooftop as he headed straight towards his enemies. If they want to fight, then it's better to take the fight to them. Plus the farther they were from the medical ward, the better. The place was an key location in the East section, according to what the message Hiro sent, even though it was under-guarded.

The leaf Jinchuuriki inwardly sighed as the thought of his kenjutsu sensei came to mind. _'Hiro-sensei you bastard, I bet you're just lounging your ass right now aren't you?'_

Naruto shook the thoughts away from his mind as he sensed numerous chakra signatures nearing his position. He made one last leap onto a three story building and leaned himself onto a nearby rail. They were near, very near. Hopefully they didn't notice his presence yet, but then again it wouldn't matter in the end.

Opening one of his holsters, he pulled out a kunai and let it dangle on his finger. A small smirk graced his lips. If he was going to make an entrance, then he was going to do it with a little style.

-----------------------------------

"How much longer?" a Hydra Jounin spoke to a Chuunin as they made their way across the East section of Kirigakure.

"Only a few blocks north of our position, sir." The said Chuunin replied.

The Hydra Jounin, seemingly the leader, nodded at this and turned his head to the Hydra nins trailing behind him. "Alright men you heard him. Go! Leave none alive!"

"**Hai!**" was the resounding response. The platoon of shinobis soon sped past their leader, each of them eager for battle.

A Hydra Chuunin was ahead of the pack quickly making his way through rooftops. The said Chuunin opened his mouth for a war cry, but was stopped as a kunai lodged itself in his throat, followed by three more kunais piercing his abdomen. Others who were trailing behind the man found themselves sharing his fate, each of them impaled with several of the same metal projectiles.

They stayed where they stood for a moment, shock visible on their visage, before they fell down to the concrete road below with resounding thuds.

The rest of the Hydra shinobis stopped in their tracks. Slight shock could be seen on their faces as they watched seven of their comrade's die within less than a few seconds.

"Who's there?!" a tall Hydra Jounin shouted, his eyes wandering around the area.

Silence was the answer, which only fueled their anxiety. Each of them set themselves on guard, anticipating an ambush from any side; even their acting commander tensed, his hands gripping his kunais tightly.

More silence followed, adding more tension to the already unsettled group of nins.

A small, almost undetectable sound of a falling high-speed object reached the Hydra leader's ears. Before he could determine where it came from, a lone kunai landed and lodged itself on the concrete roof of the building he stood on. The man's eyes studied the kunai, his gaze then shifted to the sky.

His eyes widened. "Above!"

The warning alerted his troops, their heads snapping to the skies instantly.

"By Kami…" one of them whispered to themselves as he eyed a swarm of thousands of kunais descending upon them.

The group of Hydras scattered like frightened animals as the metal projectiles rained down on them relentlessly. Sounds of metal hitting concrete and wood filled the area, along with the occasional scream of an injured or dying nin.

"**Suiton: Suijinheki!" **Water from a nearby hydrants and fountains shot up and whirled around many of the Hydra nins, shielding them from the onslaught of kunais.

Others weren't as fortunate or as smart. Some attempted to dodge, but it was in vain as they found themselves no room for escape. While a few failed to raise any defense completely and was rewarded by a quick and painful end.

The storm of metal soon slowed and eventually stopped. The Hydra leader dispersed the water of his suiton defense and gazed around at the damage. He audibly cursed as he counted ten more of his troops died, adding a total of seventeen in a span of a minute.

A loud popping noise suddenly came, startling the assembled nins. Soon every kunai started to disappear with a small amount of smoke and the same audible 'pop'.

'_Bunshins?'_ the Hydra leader thought curiously.

He shook the thoughts from his head. This was not the time to be amused.

"I want that son of a bitch who did this in front of me right now! Find him, bring him to me dead or alive. We can deal with the medical base after." the Hydra Jounin ordered.

"There's no need…" a voice from behind him spoke.

The Hydra Jounin spun around, but found no one behind him.

'_What the hell?' _

"…I'm…" the voice continued.

The assembled Hydra nins scanned the surrounding area, but nothing could be found, not even a hint of a chakra signature.

"…right…"

"Where are you?! Face me coward!" The Hydra leader screamed into the air, his eyes darting around him for a glimpse of his opponent.

"…here." a voice whispered to his ear.

The Hydra Jounin whirled around, his eyes landed on a blue ball of whirling chakra, being held by a blonde shinobi, approaching him rapidly.

"Rasengan!"

The ball of whirling chakra slammed straight to his face, shredding the skin and drilling into the man's skull. Naruto let his control slip momentarily, causing the attack to explode forward, propelling the already dead Hydra nin to a building. The nin's corpse broke through the brick wall and continued through.

The entire remaining Hydra stood frozen in place at the display of power. Many of them forced down a lump on their throats, while others just gawked at the scene. Each of them stared at the blonde teen before them, whom was calmly eyeing them with analytical eyes.

There was a moment of silence, where the two opposing sides, or side in Naruto's case, studied each other.

"W-What are we waiting for?! He's only _one_ guy, we can win." One of the Hydra nins shouted, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

Confidence returned to the nukenins as they heard that piece of logic. "Yeah…one of him and plenty of us…right…Let's kill him!"

With that said, the Hydra nins mounted their attack. Some begun to charge straight at the blonde leaf nin, while others remained behind and started to perform seals.

Naruto narrowed his eyes at the first wave of charging opponents.

"Die!" a Hydra Chuunin bellowed as he lashed out shurikens at the blonde. The leaf nin ducked under the projectiles and disappeared in a whirl of leaves. The said Konoha nin appeared directly in front of the Chuunin, startling him momentarily and leaving him off guard.

"Konoha Senpu!" Naruto roared as he sent a powerful upward kick to the man's chin, causing an audible crack as the Hydra nin's neck snapped. Before the man fell, a large gash from the upper torso to the neck appeared, causing a spray of blood.

'_Hmm…it's better not to use wind manipulation with Gouken right now. Takes a lot of chakra that I might need with these numbers.'_ he thought as he eyed the wind-based chakra wound on his first kill.

The blonde Jinchuuriki had no time to ponder, however as he quickly sidestepped a suiton jutsu from a nearby Hydra Jounin. As he landed on another roof he was met with another water dragon making its way to him. The leaf nin shifted his body and dodged the attack, before speeding off to the attacker. The attacking Hydra nin was caught by surprise and within a split second found himself kissing the tiles of the building roof from a powerful drop kick.

"Suiton: Kaihodan!"

Naruto looked to his right and saw a large, rapid stream of water making its way to him. Thinking quickly, he grabbed the fallen Hydra nin he recently knocked down and threw him to the suiton jutsu's line of fire. The end result was a dead Hydra Jounin and a startled and confused Hydra Chuunin.

The leaf Jinchuuriki wasted no time as he saw an opening in the Chuunin's guard. In a burst of speed, the blonde appeared above the Chuunin and delivered a crushing axe kick to the said nin's head. The Hydra member's face soon met the concrete road hard; protruding cracks could be seen on the road's surface.

Once again he had no time for a breather as he rolled under four rapid, football sized water bullets.

'_There' _

Naruto's eyes spied two Hydra nins on top of a nearby roof, both going began running through hand seals again. The blonde made a move to stop them but was abruptly stopped by a volley of kunais impaling him from behind.

A dark haired Hydra Jounin smiled at his success, but it was easily wiped off as the Jinchuuriki was replaced by a log.

"Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu!" a voice shouted followed by a set of screams.

The said Jounin turned his head to the noise and found his two Chuunin comrades fall to the concrete road, smoke emanating from their crisp and ashen corpses, with Naruto on the roof they previously occupied. The dark haired Hydra glared at the leaf Jinchuuriki in malice.

"Damn you!" the Jounin spat in venom as he charged at the blonde leaf nin.

Naruto blocked a right hook and countered with a knee to the man's stomach. He followed with an uppercut to the chin and finished it off with a large, chakra enhanced fist to the man's throat. The Hydra nin chocked out blood before falling limp to the ground.

As the blonde leaf nin watched the Hydra nin's body fall, his senses suddenly picked up chakra flares from all around him.

"**Suiton: Teppodama!"** a chorus of voices shouted.

Naruto found himself surrounded by at least eleven nins, all in synch with the same jutsu. Soon, a dozen of water bullets shot out at him from all sides. Naruto's eyes narrowed before he pumped chakra to his legs and leaped into the air.

The moved proved to be a mistake as he spotted more Hydra nins on the rooftops, many of them running through seals as well.

'_Shit!' _the blonde cursed with widened eyes.

"Suiton: Suiryudan!"

"Suiton: Hahonryu!"

"Suiton: Suikodan no Jutsu!"

'…_Aw hell…'_ Naruto dismally thought as the said suiton jutsus surrounded him. The blonde continued to silently berate himself as the jutsus came closer and closer.

The three jutsus met head on and resulted in a large explosion of water, drenching the surrounding area. The Hydra nins smiled at their victory, but it was short lived as the mist cleared and no remains of their target could be found.

"Kuso!" one of them shouted in frustration.

"Phew...close call."

The Hydra nins snapped their head to the voice and found Naruto leaning on a building wall, a three pronged kunai dangling in his fingers.

"You won't get so lucky next time! Get him!" Another Hydra Jounin shouted to his remaining comrades.

Naruto took this moment to roll his eyes at his opponent's arrogance while returning the Hiraishin kunai to its holster.

An enemy Chuunin charged from the side with a nodachi in his hands. Naruto dodged the Chuunin's thrust and spun behind him. The blonde then grabbed his sword arm and twisted it causing the shinobi to gasp in pain and drop his blade. With a swift kick, he sent the nin forward and slammed him onto the building wall he previously leaned on. Taking the enemy's nodachi, he impaled the Chuunin in the stomach, finishing him off.

Naruto tore his gaze away from his fallen enemy in time to dodge a round house kick to the head. The blonde was about to counter, but was forced to block a blow from another opponent. The two nukenins continued their double-team taijutsu assault, to which Naruto kept up with.

Though to Naruto's dismay, a third Hydra nin joined the fray and added in his own two cents.

A barrage of kicks and punches were thrown at the Jinchuuriki in quick succession, to which he all blocked or dodged. The blonde growled in annoyance at his predicament. For every kick or punch he dodged, another was waiting around the corner, that and along with the fact that his three Hydra opponents had good teamwork and formidable taijutsu wasn't helping him any.

After a few minutes, the three Hydra nins broke off and jumped away from the blonde. Naruto raised an eyebrow in question, but was soon answered as a chakra signature flared, and with it a jet of water flying towards him accompanying it.

With no time for hand seals, the blonde aimed his right palm towards the torrent. "Fuuton: Atsugai!"

An explosion of wind shot forth and sliced through the suiton jutsu and continued on to the attacking Hydra nin. The force of the wind crushed the nin to the ground, creating a small crater in the process.

The sound of footsteps reached the blonde's ears. Turning around he saw three familiar Hydra nins rushing at him once again from different sides.

'_I've had enough with these guys.'_

The three Hydra nins were closing in, and soon were in striking range. Naruto quickly formed Rasenyaiba, and with one quick spin he managed to dispatch two of the three. The remaining Hydra nin clutched his bleeding abdomen while slowly dragging himself away from the leaf Jinchuuriki.

The whisker marked teen took no chances and finished him off with a round house kick to the head.

At the corner of his eyes, he spotted more enemies coming in from both sides. The blonde sighed in frustration before charging to the group on his right. He ducked under the first Hydra Jounin's kick and impaled him through his chest. Using his heel as a pivot, Naruto spun around and dismembered the two Chuunins behind the Jounin.

He spotted two other Jounins dashing towards him, both wielding nodachis that he noted were previously equipped by their comrades. Naruto stood his ground and motioned them to come.

A couple of seconds later, the blonde found himself dodging sword strikes from both sides. Upon dodging a diagonal slash from one of the Hydra Jounins, Naruto countered with an upward slash that severed the nin's lungs.

The blonde nin then focused his attention on the other Jounin. Shifting his body weight to the left, Naruto dodged a horizontal strike all the while leaving the Jounin open for a counter.

But before he could deal the killing blow, a sharp pain erupted from his back causing him to lose his concentration and dispel Rasenyaiba. The Hydra Jounin saw this as an opportunity and struck him down.

It was in vain however, as Naruto was replaced by a log tied with numerous explosive tags. The Hydra nin's eyes widened, before he was engulfed in a loud explosion.

Naruto watched the scene from a higher building. His hand clasped on the already healing wound on his shoulder blade caused by a suiton jutsu.

'_Either the guy is skilled, got lucky, or I just got careless. Probably a little bit of all three.'_ he mused.

His senses soon picked up an oncoming attack from behind. Reactivating Rasenyaiba, he whirled around in time to parry three water bullets.

'_Damn, pretty close. Probably the same guy who nicked me. Where the he-!'_

He was cut off from his thoughts as five Hydra nins leapt at him from a nearby building. Expelling chakra from his feet, Naruto jumped to the sky. His five opponents soon followed, to which the blonde smiled. They fell for his bait.

The blonde waited as they slowly approached him in mid-air. A second later they were only a few feet from him.

'_Got ya'_

Using slight wind manipulation, Naruto began to spin rapidly with both legs outstretched.

"Konoha Daisenpu!"

The force of the spinning kick quickly expelled all five of the nukenins, slamming them to nearby roofs and buildings.

Naruto smiled at his handiwork. He came a long way during his training, before he couldn't even do a proper basic lotus, and now it was natural to him.

As he landed down, he once again was forced to dodge multiple water projectiles. The blonde narrowed his eyes and gazed around the area.

"Dammit! This is getting old!"

After those words left his lips, another volley came at him, which he swiftly dodged. Extending his senses, he found a well hidden chakra signature a dozen meters away.

Multiple groans reached his ears. He turned to the source and saw four of the five Hydra nins he recently dispatch stir in the rubble. Naruto turned his attention away and focused in the direction of the chakra signature instead. He can deal with them later.

-----------------------------

A tall, green eyed shinobi stared in Naruto's direction. A cloth mask and bandana obscured his features as he hid himself behind a chimney of a store roof.

A chakra signature suddenly appeared, causing his eyes to widen in surprise.

'_Shit! He found me already?!' _he silently cursed.

Before he could make a move, a cold object pressed onto his neck. His eyes gazed downward and found a kunai touching his neck.

A slight chuckle escaped his lips. "You're pretty good."

Naruto raised an eyebrow at the feminine voice as he clutched his kunai to the Hydra nin's throat. "You're not bad yourself."

The Hydra nin chuckled again.

"What's so funny?" Naruto asked cautiously, all the while wrapping his other arm around his opponent's upper body, holding him down in place.

The ninja suddenly tensed and became rigid as the blonde's hand clamped down on his chest.

Squish…

"Squish?" Naruto asked no one in particular.

The leaf Jinchuuriki squeezed again, only to feel a soft, pillow like substance.He squeezed once more for good measure, but it was still the same cushion like feel.

Realization suddenly struck him like a rolling Akamichi.

Naruto made a move to let go, but the damage was already done.

"HENTAI!"

The blonde soon found himself clutching his stomach from a swift elbow strike. His grip on his kunai slipped, along with his hold on the man…er…woman.

The now free kunoichi saw Naruto's guard drop. Taking this opportunity, she grabbed the kunai the leaf nin dropped and made a move to stab him in the side.

The blonde however recovered quickly and performed an upward kick to the kunoichi's wrist, disarming her of his kunai. Out of instinct, he grabbed the kunai in mid-air and impaled it to the Hydra nin's abdomen.

A moment of silenced passed as the reality of his actions sank into Naruto.

His body jerked away from the kunoichi and stared at her with wide eyes. Without any support, the kunoichi began to fall but was caught by the blonde.

Sticking to the slanted roof with chakra, he kneeled down and laid her on his leg. He tore off her cloth mask, and with it her bandana, to allow easier breathing, causing her long raven hair to fall down to her now exposed visage.

"W-Well done." the woman spoke through ragged breaths. The kunoichi's eyes gazed at him with a mix of hatred, pain, and admiration.

"I…I…"

"F-Finish… me." She said softly as she laid a hand on her bleeding abdomen.

"What?!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Why not? You…had no problem getting this far…" she replied.

"Because…because…" the blonde stuttered.

"…B-Because I'm a woman?" she finished.

Naruto just stared at her, but the look in his eyes said it all.

Yes.

"You've never...killed a woman have you?"

This time the blonde nodded his head, albeit grudgingly.

The woman chuckled slightly, resulting in a questioning gaze by the blonde teen.

"You're…still quite…naïve despite your strength." she said.

"What do you mean?" Naruto questioned.

"What _truly _makes a shinobi…and a kunoichi different?" she asked rhetorically before continuing. "Almost nothing…we are both ninjas...with strengths, weaknesses and ranks. We are born the same way…and die the same way…So what makes us different from each other?"

Naruto stayed silent and absorbed her logic. What truly made a shinobi and kunoichi different?

Gender?

No, that's only a trivial component. So if not gender, then what was the difference?

"Nothing...no difference at all." he said softly.

The woman smiled before she replied. "Then…why do you hesitate to kill me?"

"I…"

"Do it… Please...end my pain. I ask this of you...as a shinobi."

The blonde looked at her and saw her pleading eyes.

He sighed in defeat. "All right."

Silently, he activated Rasenyaiba in his right hand.

"Wait." the woman spoke clearly despite her erratic breathing. "What's your name?"

Naruto looked her and smiled before he responded. "Uzumaki Naruto. The next Hokage of Konoha."

"Kasuga Misora…pleasure to meet you." she said with a smile in return.

As he raised his blade her body stiffened, but her eyes remained glued to his.

"Godspeed to you…Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto hesitated only an instant, before his blade fell.

There was no scream or yell, just a smile of peace from the dying woman.

-----------------------------------------

He looked down at her, numbness overcame him as a great amount of grief began to build inside of him. It was the first time he killed a woman. He didn't know why but something about a woman felt differently than when killing a man.

He felt a lone tear roll down his cheek. The last few minutes forced him to relive the first time he killed a person, and just like the first, he didn't like it.

His senses soon picked up four familiar chakra signatures nearing him, but he paid them no mind and continued to hold Misora's cold, dead body. They stayed there for a few minutes longer, before the group of Hydra nins reached them.

"So that bitch is dead. Good riddance, she was too damn soft." A big, burly man said with a smirk.

"Yeah, she was better of being a whore than a shinobi." Another one said, eliciting a chuckle from the others.

Naruto gritted his teeth in anger at this. His free hand clenching to a tight fist.

"What's the matter brat? Getting angry just because we're talking about the whore?" A Hydra Chuunin snickered.

With that said, the blonde felt himself snap. Naruto silently laid Misora's body back to the roof's surface and took one last glance at her peaceful expression. He then rose up from his kneeling position, with his back still turned to his enemies.

"…kill you…" his voice was low and venomous, but was clear to all of the Hydra nins.

"What's that runt? I misheard you. I think you meant we're going to kill you. You got lucky last time with that fancy taijutsu of yours, but you won't get us twice with the same trick." The burly Hydra nin said in a taunting tone.

"All of you…I'm going to kill all of you." He spoke again, this time with a large amount of killing intent leaking out of him. All four of the Hydra nins tensed at the sheer amount, but the burly Hydra nin soon recovered.

Naruto turned around and looked at him with malice. The large Hydra nin grinned with amusement but it was wiped off as he looked at the blonde's eyes.

His bloody, crimson eyes.

"It can't be…"

Before he could say anymore, a blade of wind pierced his torso. The well built ninja stared at the blonde in disbelief before his body fell off the roof and to the dirt road below.

The other three Hydra nins stood speechless at the speed their comrade was slain, but that was quickly replaced by anger.

"You piece of shit! I'm gonn-" the words left the Hydra Chuunin as a pair of three tomoe eyes glared at him and his companions.

"S-Sharingan?! An Uchiha?!" one of them exclaimed, fear present in his voice.

"Dammit, it doesn't matter if he's an Uchiha!" the last one exclaimed as he leapt towards the blonde. His two comrades looked at each other before they too charged at the crimson eyed leaf nin.

The wheels of the Sharingan began to spin, and the world seemed to slow down to the Jinchuuriki. Naruto saw everything, every movement that they made and every move they were about to make. All of it were sequenced in order like pages in a book.

In one fluid motion he dispatched two of them with a quick but lethal slash, leaving the third heavily wounded.

Time returned to normal to the blonde as the sound of bodies hitting roof tiles reached his ears. His eyes then darted to the last live Hydra nin.

"Don't come any closer!" Shouted the Hydra Chuunin as he clasped his hand on his ruptured liver while he tried to put some distance between him and the advancing leaf Jinchuuriki.

Desperately, the ninja grabbed his remaining shurikens, and with a cry, launched them at the blonde before him.

But his efforts proved fruitless as the leaf nin steadily walked past the flying projectiles without so much as a scratch. This only hastened the Chuunin's retreat, but he stopped as he reached the end of the building roof.

Naruto stood in front of him, his Sharingan eyes glaring daggers at the wounded man before him.

"Please Uchiha-san, have mercy!" the injured nin groveled.

Naruto only gave him an even fiercer glare, causing the ninja flinch.

"Not Uchiha...its _Uzumaki_." the blonde said, adding emphasis to his name. "And for your request, my answer is…"

The twin crimson orbs began to spin once again, while a small smirk formed on his lips.

"...No"

A gale of wind passed by, blowing leaves from the streets and muffling the Chuunin's last cry of agony.

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Mahiro made her way to the Eastern part of Kirigakure with a few Jounins beside her. She quickly dashed along rooftops, making her way to the East medical base. Reports from her Chuunin spies told her that the remaining Hydra forces planned for a desperate strike around that area.

As acting Kage, she needed to make sure of her people's safety personally.

After a few minutes of fast paced traveling, they soon reached the East section. The faint smell of blood was present in the air upon arrival. Anxiety welled up inside of her as she picked up her pace.

'_Please tell me I'm not too late'_

"Mizukage-sama look!" one of the Jounins accompanying her spoke whilst pointing further ahead.

The Rokudaime squinted her eyes to the direction her charge pointed. She spied a large number crows gathered around numerous roofs, and some on the road.

"Scavengers…Shit! That means there're bodies!" she exclaimed as she rushedoff to the nearest gathering.

Within seconds she reached the roof of a bakery, where dozens of crows feasted on a corpse. With a quick spike of killing intent she repelled the raven feathered birds, allowing access to the dead body. She kneeled down beside the remnants of the corpse, examining the wounds around the tattered carcass.

A moment later, her Jounin charges arrived and gathered around the corpse as well.

"A Hydra nin…skewed directly through the heart. Whoever did this was good." She mumbled to herself.

She tore away her eyes and looked to one of her Jounins. "How many shinobis were stationed around here?"

An auburn haired kunoichi answered. "There were about thirty three Jounins and forty Chuunins in total in the East area. Most of them are located in the Academy and the merchant district. The medical ward had the least."

"I see." Mahiro said in thought.

"There's more." a blue, long haired Jounin said, catching the attention of the Rokudaime, whom urged him to continue. "An Anbu has reported that a friend of Hiro-sama, Uzumaki Naruto, has stationed himself in the medical base along with three members of Anbu."

The Mizukage's eyes flashed, a smile playing on her lips.

"That's good news. Very good news indeed."

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**A/N:** A reason why Naruto didn't just go all out with his jutsus is that he wanted to cause minimal damage to the buildings while still being able to defeat his opponents. That's why he opened his assualt with Kage Kunai no Jutsu (Shadow Kunai Technique). He's able to attack in a large scale, all the while giving the least damage to the surrounding buildings.

The scene with Kasuga Misora was meant to portray Naruto's mental development. He has killed but he hasn't killed a woman yet, and that is sort of different when you kill a guy. Just like Momochi Zabuza, I want Misora to be another person that gives Naruto an important lesson about being a shinobi.

As for the little show of the Sharingan, I really couldn't help myself there. But like I said before, it will have a larger role in an upcoming chapter.

A little teaser. **Chapter 11: The One Eyed Dragon of the Mist **

**Translations:**

**Suiton: Suijinheki **(Water Release: Water Encampment Wall)

**Konoha Senpu **(Leaf Whirlwind)

**Suiton: Kaihodan **(Water Release: Pressure Canon)

**Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu **(Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique)

**Suiton: Teppodama **(Water Release: Gunshot)

**Suiton: Suiryudan **(Water Release: Water Dragon Missile)

**Suiton: Hahonryu **(Water Release: Rapid Crasher)

**Suiton: Suikodan no Jutsu **(Water Release: Water Shark Missile Technique)

**Fuuton: Atsugai **(Wind Release: Pressure Damage)

**Konoha Daisenpu **(Leaf Great Whirlwind)

Reviews keeps my fic alive, so give me some feedback!


	11. 11: The One Eyed Dragon of the Mist

**A/N: **As you know, in my fic I'm not using **Hyouton **as a bloodline. Mainly because of **Naruto The Movie: Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow.** This is where other nins use Hyouton jutsus commonly, and even Kakashi copies some Hyouton jutsus.

**But!** Mokuton is _still_ going to remain a bloodline. That's pretty much set in stone.

**Image Alert:** For fanart finatics, there is a pic (in my profile) of what I picture Naruto to look like in my story. The link says Yondaime, but to me the image is almost exactly how I described Naruto, even though the whisker marks are absent. The pic was not done by me.

THIS IS NOT A CROSSOVER!

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**Chapter 11: Pervert! The One Eyed Dragon of the Mist**

Naruto stared ruefully at the grave before him. The name of his first female kill was newly etched onto the tombstone. It was fortunate that the Mizukage was kind enough to allow a grave for the woman, despite the fact that she was an enemy.

_Kasuga Misora_

_Unexpected teacher and proud shinobi._

A small, soft smile graced his lips as he read that statement. He looked at the bouquet of roses he held in his right hand, before setting it down on the grave.

The blonde then sat himself down comfortably on the ground and continued to stare at the tombstone.

No words came from him.

Just a pair of sorrowful cerulean eyes gazing absently at the deceased.

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Minutes turned to hours and still Naruto silently stayed at the grave. It was already passed morning, and well at the start of noon. But time was something the blonde wasn't paying attention to at the moment.

His reverie, however, was soon stopped as a female voice spoke to him.

"You know Uzumaki-kun, continuous brooding is the first sign of extreme emotional problems."

The blonde whirled around and was greeted by Mahiro, whom stood a few feet away, smiling warmly at him.

"I'm sorry for interrupting, but I don't think Konoha would appreciate their upcoming Hokage to be emo." she chuckled.

The blonde couldn't resist chuckling as well, and soon both nins erupted in laughter for a good minute before it died down.

"Thank you Mahiro-sama, I needed that." he said with a grateful look.

The Mizukage just waved at him dismissively. "No need Uzumaki-kun. And please don't be so formal, I've been drowning in formality these past few days, a break from it all would be nice."

"Only if you would call me Naruto." he replied with a large grin.

"Fair enough."

"So what brings you here Mahiro-san?" he asked.

The green haired kage stepped closer and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "We've been worried about you. It's been a week since the attack and you've been distant since. Is there anything I could help?"

Naruto shook his head as he replied. "I just needed some time alone to think."

"I understand what you're feeling, but you can't let that hold you down Naruto-kun. The past is the past, we can't do anything about it once it's done." she spoke in a soft, but stern voice.

The blonde leaf nin stayed silent, pondering on her words. For a few minutes the two stayed in relative silence, before Mahiro decided to break it. The Mizukage walked in front of the whisker marked teen and stretched out her hand, resulting in a question look by the said teen.

"Come and join me for lunch. I doubt you've eaten anything yet." she said.

Naruto opened his mouth to respond, but his stomach beat him to it by growling loudly, causing the blonde to slightly blush in embarrassment. Mahiro giggled at his display, adding to his chagrin. With a sigh he grabbed the Rokudaime's hand and pulled himself up.

"Well Naruto-kun, I hope you enjoy barbecue."

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"Ugh...guard duty." a female, blue haired, jounin sighed as she leaned herself on the South gate of Kiri.

"Heh heh, it's not that bad Yuna-chan." a brown haired kunoichi said as she gave the dejected jounin a pat on the back.

Yuna turned her head and lightly glared at her. "Easy for you to say, being in Anbu and all you're pretty much used to this."

"Yeah, but I'm off duty today, so I just thought I'd keep you company." she replied with a shrug.

The female Anbu's face became serious before she spoke again. "How's your teammate doing?"

The female Jounin arched an eyebrow in surprise, but was soon replaced with a smile. "He's recovering nicely, thanks for your concern Nodoka-chan."

"Hey, that's what frie--huh?" she broke off as she looked at the dirt road beyond the South gate.

Yuna looked at her curiously. "What's the matter?"

"Someone's coming" Nodoka said as she gripped the hilt of her nodachi.

Her azure haired friend put a hand over her shuriken pouch at the ready as well, her eyes wandering around the surrounding area. Kiri was still on high alert after all, extra caution was needed.

"I'm sensing one chakra signature." Yuna said while keeping her gaze forward.

Nodoka nodded her head. "Same here."

A few minutes passed before a tall, white haired man in an interesting outfit came into view. The elder nin was viewed with cautiousness as he was closing to the South gate, and though he seemed to have no ulterior motive, the two kunoichis kept their guard up to be certain.

"Halt! State your name and business." The auburn haired Anbu said whilst keeping eye contact with the older nin.

The white haired nin smirked as he set himself in a ridiculous pose, to which the two kunoichis sweat dropped at. "I am Mt. Myobokugama's Holy Master Sennin! The renowned Gama Sennin!"

The older shinobi then shifted to another ridiculous pose, causing the two female nins to sweat drop further. "Behold, for I am the great, the wonderful, the oh so irresistible-!"

"Jiraiya-sama, what in Kami's name are you doing?" a voice interrupted.

The two kunoichis turned around and found Hiro staring at the Sannin with a raised eyebrow.

Jiraiya face faulted at the interruption, but quickly recovered and gave a glare to the Shinobigatana member. "I was in the middle of an introduction Hiro!"

The Kiri nin waved it off as he walked closer to the Sannin. "What brings you here Jiraiya-sama? It was only been a week since the last time you came."

"Yeah, Tsunade's been working me to the ground lately. Word about the attack reached Konoha a few days back, and she ordered me to get back here and make sure everything's in order." he replied in a slightly annoyed tone.

"I'm glade Tsunade-sama's worried about our well being, though as you can see everything's fine at the moment." Hiro replied.

"Hiro-sama, who's this?" Yuna cut in, earning her a look from the two shinobis.

The raven haired swordsman walked next to Jiraiya and clamped a hand on the older man's shoulder. "This is Jiraiya-sama, one of the three Sannins of Konoha. Also the infamous author of th-umphhh."

Hiro cut off as a hand firmly covered his mouth. The white haired nin beside him chuckled nervously as the two kunoichi guards looked at him questioningly.

Nodoka dismissed the scene and switched her attention to her superior's introduction of the Sannin. "This is Jiraiya-sama of the Sannin? As in the sensei of Uzumaki-san?"

At the mention of 'Uzumaki', Yuna's interest piqued and she, along with her kunoichi friend, looked to the Gama Sennin for an answer.

Jiraiya looked at the two in amusement, before he broke out in a perverted giggle. "Ohohohoho...I see the gaki's been busy with the opposite sex lately."

Both women slightly blushed at his statement, before feminine fury welled up inside of them. But before they can act on it, Hiro interrupted, much to their dismay.

"I don't know about that, but Naruto-kun has been very helpful with Kiri's recovery. He's helped save many lives, and for that I'm grateful." the Shinobigatana said, all the while indirectly easing the tension between the white haired leaf nin and the kunoichis.

"Well, since I'm here I might as well check up on him. Tsunade's worried about him despite the fact that he's now one of the finest shinobis we got." The Sannin said with a shrug. "I need a break anyway. Traveling back and forth in between countries isn't easy for an old man like me. Especially since Gamabunta's being moody lately, something about being used as a royal carriage."

At that statement, the Shinobigatana member chuckled nervously. The toad summoner eyed him suspiciously but the Kiri nin waved it off as his expression returned to normal.

"Follow me if you would." Hiro said as he started to walk through the village gates. But he was stopped as Jiraiya called out to him.

"Wait."

The Kiri nin turned back to the older nin. "What is it Jiraiya-sama?"

"There's another reason why I came." Jiraiya said with a serious expression. "I found Bontenmaru."

Hiro's eyes widened before he replied. "Where is he?"

The white haired Sannin smirked and pointed to the village. "Closer to home than you think."

The Shinobigatana member looked at him in disbelief. "Are you certain?"

"Pretty certain. My spies told me that he was making a beeline for Kiri a couple of days ago." Jiraiya said as he too passed the village gates. "Come on, I'll help you find him while I'm here. I got nothing better to do."

Hiro nodded and trailed the Sannin, whom was well inside Kiri already.

The two kunoichis silently watched the two shinobis disappear into the horizon. Both were having thoughts on the conversation they just heard.

"Bontenmaru-sama is here?" Yuna asked, breaking the silence.

"Must have been pretty recently because none of the Anbu guards spotted him. But then again, Bontenmaru-sama is an expert in being undetected." Nodoka replied.

The blue haired Jounin nodded her head, satisfied with the answer. For a few minutes, the two kunoichis stayed in silence once more, before it was broken again by Yuna.

"So that was Uzumaki-san's sensei, one of the Sannins of Konoha." She said as she took on a thoughtful pose.

"Speaking of Uzumaki-san, I haven't seen him much lately." her Anbu friend said.

"I heard that he's been frequently seen in the graveyard in the north section. Mizukage-sama says it's because a friend of his died during the attack. As for who it is, I don't know." Yuna said.

The auburn haired Anbu looked to the north section with pitying eyes. "I hope he's doing okay."

"He's a strong guy, I'm sure he'll get over it soon." the blue haired kunoichi said reassuringly.

Nodoka only smiled and nodded in response.

---------------------------------

Naruto slowly walked through the streets of Kiri. His right hand clamped over his satisfied stomach as he made his way to the nearest training ground.

"Jeez, who knew the barbecue here was so addicting?" he muttered.

He continued to walk pass the residential area and soon made his way to a commercial district, all the while receiving greetings from almost all the Kiri shinobis he passed by. The blonde smiled at the positive attention, it is a rare experience for him after all.

As he neared a hot spring, the sound of giggling reached his acute ears, causing them to twitch.

"No way he's here." Naruto said with wide eyes.

Quickly hiding his chakra signature, the blonde silently but quickly made his way inside the men's side. He scanned the area until he found the wooden wall that divided the men's bath from the women's. The leaf nin slowly walked closer to the noise until a figure came into view from the steam of the springs.

Naruto seemed slightly disappointed as the figure wasn't Jiraiya. Instead there was a gray haired middle aged man with a large build with black, baggy pants and a white sash covering his lower body, while only a cloak covered the top half, thus exposing his well built torso. The most notable item was a large sword of medium length that was held in the said man's sash.

The blonde, after examining the man before him, stepped closer. "Hey, what are you doing you pervert."

The man turned around, all the while showing an eye patch covering his right eye. "Quiet down kid, I'm trying to enjoy myself here."

With that said, the gray haired man once again turned his attention to a small peephole while resuming his perverted giggles.

'_Why you perverted bastard…'_ Naruto inwardly seethed as a vein on his forehead began to throb.

In the blink of an eye, the blonde dashed to the man with a fist ready to strike; the older man seemed unaware of the attack. _'Got ya.'_

But before the hit connected, a large hand gripped his fist tightly. Naruto slightly winced at the pressure of the grip before his eyes focused on the gray haired man who was still peeping despite having effortlessly blocked his attack.

"Kids these days, they got no respect for their elders." the man sighed as he turned his head to the blonde.

The man's grip tightened as he spoke, "Listen brat, we can do this the easy way and no one gets hurt, or the _fun_ way. Which one would it be?"

The blonde smiled before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

'_Kage Bunshin?'_ the unknown shinobi thought curiously.

"I needed a work out anyway." Naruto exclaimed as he delivered a spin kick behind the man.

The older nin grinned as he blocked the kick with his right palm. "Entertain me kid."

The leaf Jinchuuriki growled as he leapt away from the gray haired nin. Focusing chakra to his feet, the blonde disappeared only to reappear directly below the burly shinobi.

"Konoha Senpu!" Naruto roared as he sent a powerful upward kick to the man's face. The shinobi grinned again as he quickly stepped backward, dodging the attack and leaving the blonde open.

"You let your guard down!" the man exclaimed as he sent his own kick to the leaf nin.

The blonde Jinchuuriki hastily twisted his body and managed to block the kick with his right arm. The strenght of the blow forced him to skid a number of meters back.

'_Who is this guy? His hits are stronger than Gai's.'_ the blonde thought in surprise as he rubbed his stinging arm.

Naruto glared at the nin as he rushed at him and let loose a series of punches and kicks. The gray haired shinobi smirked as he dodged the attacks and countered with his own.

Their taijutsu battle continued for minutes, with both of them neither making a solid hit on the other. With a final kick from both shinobis, the two separated for a breather. Naruto looked at his opponent and grinned, to which the said man did the same.

"You're not bad brat. Not bad at all." the black clad shinobi said in an amused tone.

The Jinchuuriki smirked. "You're not bad yourself, for an old man."

The older man ignored the insult and motioned him with his left hand. "Come."

Naruto charged straight at the man and threw a diagonal kick, but the attack was caught once more.

"Charging straight at me isn't gonna work kid." He said with a disappointed tone.

The blonde smirked before he exploded in smoke.

'_Another Kage Bunshin? I didn't even see him make any seals.'_

As the well built nin pondered in thought, the blonde was closing in from his right side, his blind side.

Naruto smirked as he prepared to attack, but it was wiped off as the older shinobi sported a smirk as well.

Before he knew it, an elbow was making its way to the blonde's stomach. Thinking quickly, the leaf nin pushed himself off the ground with wind manipulation, dodging the strike, and flipped over the man.

Though the second he landed, he was forced to block another kick that sent him skidding to a nearby wall. Naruto looked at the man with slight surprise.

"Attacking my blind spot huh? Quite clever, but it won't work on me." The gray haired shinobi said as he lifted the eye patch showing his scarred right eye. "You see, I'm used to people attacking on my right side that I can sense movement better with it than I can on my left."

The blonde's eyes narrowed as he spoke. "Still, a blind spot is a blind spot. Just who are you?"

"I'd like to ask you the same thing. It's not everyday that I find a brat that can keep up with me for this long." the shinobi said in a mix of suspicion and glee.

"I asked you first." Naruto deadpanned, causing the elder nin to sweat drop.

Quickly composing himself, the gray haired man spoke again. "Fine brat, the name's Bontenmaru...Itada Bontenmaru."

'_Where have I heard that name before?'_ the blonde thought before he replied. "Uzumaki Naruto."

"Ahh, so you're the kid I've been hearing about. And I see the rumors are true, you're quite strong." the nin said as he stroked his chin in thought.

"Heh, you're pretty tough yourself." the Jinchuuriki said.

He closed his eyes and took a moment before he reopened them, a smirk crossing his lips. "How fun."

The elder man grinned. "Indeed."

Within less than a second, the two nins charged at each other again. Chakra visibly coursing around their bodies as they drew nearer.

"Bon-kun!" a voice shouted.

"Wha?" the gray haired shinobi turned his head to the voice, but it proved to be fatal as Naruto's punch connected with his cheek. "Aargghh!"

The older nin tumbled comically to the floor and beside Hiro, whom was emerging from the steam.

"Told you we'd find him here." Another voice spoke.

Naruto turned his gaze to the voice and saw the approaching form of Jiraiya. "Ero-sennin! What are you doing here?"

A vein throbbed on the Sannin's forehead. "Brat stop calling me that!"

"Ugghh." the gray haired nin interrupted as he stood up abruptly whilst massaging his cheek. "Kid packs a punch."

"It's been a while, Bontenmaru." The white haired Sannin said as his eyes made contact with the man. Bontenmaru looked at him with slight suprise before a small smile crossed his lips as he replied.

"Heh, seven years Jiraiya, seven years and you still look the same."

"What can I say? I have to keep shape for the ladies." the Gama Sennin said with a lecherous twinkle in his eyes.

The large Kiri nin chuckled, before his expression returned to normal and changed the subject.

"You know that kid?" he said as he pointed to the blonde Jinchuuriki standing beside Hiro in a far corner.

"He's my student." Jiraiya said with pride.

Bontenmaru's eyes widened momentarily before he smirked. "You're student eh? That explains a lot."

-------

Naruto raised an eyebrow to the two older nin's continuing conversation. "Hiro-sensei, who is that guy?"

Hiro looked at his charge and smiled. "That man, Naruto-kun, is Itada Bontenmaru of the Kiri Shinobigatana."

The blonde was slightly taken aback, but quickly nodded at this, it made sense seeing as the man more than kept up with him during their fight.

"Though he's more famously known by his nickname." the Kiri nin said.

"Oh? What's he called?" the whisker marked teen asked curiously.

The raven haired Shinobigatana member eyed the gray haired Kiri nin, whom was chatting animatedly with Jiraiya a few meters away, before replying.

"The One Eyed Dragon of the Mist. One of the strongest of the Shichinin Shu."

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**THIS IS NOT A CROSSOVER!**

**A/N:** The third Kiri Shinobigatana member has now made his appearance at last! Nothing much else to say about this chapter.

**Image alert:** Sorry but this one was a last minute addition. This pic is for how I picture Bontenmaru. Once again it's in my profile, so check it out if you want.

Reviews are always welcome. Trust me, they're _very welcomed._


	12. Final moments of a Hebi

**A/N: THIS IS NOT A CROSSOVER.** I'm repeating that just in case you haven't got the message. Also this chapter is one of the shorter ones.

Enjoy.

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**Chapter 12: Final moments of a Hebi **

Orochimaru sat attentively in the lone seat of his 'throne room', on his right was Kabuto and on his left was a high jounin guard whose name the Otokage didn't bother remembering. His focus, however, was centered on the odd pair of Akatsuki members in front of him.

"An alliance?" the Sannin asked in disbelief and suspicion.

"Hai. Shishou wishes to extend a partnership with your village, one that would be beneficial to both parties." Zetsu spoke as he drew nearer to the candlelight, revealing his venus-flytrap figure.

The snake summoner narrowed his eyes. "What right do you have to ask an alliance from me? I recall your organization attacking me not too long ago, what guarantees that it will not happen again?"

The second Akatsuki member stepped out of the shadows; an odd orange mask concealing his features. "Here's your guarantee Orochimaru-san."

Reaching inside his cloak, Tobi pulled out a pair of large scrolls and handed it to Kabuto, whom looked at the said items carefully.

"And what, pray tell are these?" the Sannin asked as he eyed the scrolls.

"Forbidden scrolls from Iwa and Kumo. I'm sure they would prove to be quite valuable." Zetsu answered.

Orochimaru's eyes flashed momentarily before returning to his normal expression. His gaze shifted towards Kabuto and the scrolls in his hands. "Open it."

The silver haired medic-nin nodded and cautiously opened the documents. For a few minutes, the room stayed silent as the Sannin's right hand man examined the contents. After another minute the medic-nin looked at his superior and nodded. "It's legit."

The snake Sannin closed his eyes in thought before opening them. He looked at Zetsu in the eye with a hardened stare. "Tell me, what would you do if I refuse?"

The grass-nin Akatsuki member quickly replied. "If you refuse, then you will be an enemy of Akatsuki, and will be terminated."

The Otokage closed his eyes again and pondered. A moment passed before his eyes opened and showed a twinkle of amusement. "I thank you, Zetsu-kun, for the gifts but…"

A smirk crossed Orochimaru's lips, slightly unnerving the two nukenins. With a snap of his fingers, numerous Oto-nins barged through the throne room entrance and surrounded the two nukenins.

"What is the meaning of this?" Zetsu asked, his face expressionless but his eyes glowed in anger.

"You say that I will become an enemy of Akatsuki if I refuse?" the snake Sannin spoke as he rose from his chair. "From the moment you interfered with my plans you became my enemy. Do not think I will easily forgive your assassination attempt on me six months ago."

The venus flytrap nukenin smirked back at him, his anger partially subsided. "If you still remember that day, then you should remember how easy it was for us to cripple you."

The Otokage sent a glare with a spike of killing intent, but soon composed himself. "Akatsuki was complete back then. I doubt you can pull that stunt again with your organization having lost some of its valued members."

Zetsu gritted his teeth while Tobi slightly fidgeted.

"We're in a pickle here Zetsu-senpai." the orange masked nukenin said as he scanned the Oto-nins around them.

With a silent command from the Sannin, the Oto-nins closed in on the Akatsuki members. One of them appeared at Orochimaru's side in a puff of smoke.

The smoke quickly dispersed, revealing Uchiha Sasuke dressed in what seemed to be a loose hakama.

"Your orders Orochimaru?" the Uchiha asked whilst activating his Sharingan.

The Sannin raised his hand signaling him to standby. "Any last words Zetsu-kun?"

"You will not get away with this." He sneered.

"Oh? And what can two Akatsuki members do against a whole village?" the Sannin asked in amusement.

Tobi stepped up and waved his finger disapprovingly. (the 'tsk tsk' motion) "Not two Orochimaru-san. Three!"

As if on cue, the two scrolls in Kabuto's hands glowed before jerking out from the medic-nin's grasp. The two items then unrolled on the floor in an 'X' shape.

The text inside the scrolls began to liquefy and deteriorate before merging together in the middle, creating a complex seal.

The snake Kage's eyes widened at the seal in realization. "A summoning?!"

A small lump formed in the spot where the scrolls met and continued to grow. As the bulge continued to grow, the gathered shinobis watched in anxiety and anticipation. Within half a minute the lump grew to a height of near six feet.

Orochimaru eyed the scene before him warily, with his hand ready to signal an attack.

The scrolls soon erupted in smoke, which disappeared as quickly as it came. A tall, orange haired man with red eyes and black cloak stood where the scrolls once lay. The man's eyes wandered around the room before his gaze rested on the Otokage.

"Orochimaru, it has been awhile." His voice was deep and emotionless.

The snake Sannin's eyebrow arched in curiosity as he analyzed the young looking Akatsuki member. "I take it you're the leader, your face is the only one I didn't see in my stay in that wretched organization. To think a brat like you commands a group of S-class criminals."

The Akatsuki leader didn't respond, instead he turned his attention to his subordinates behind him.

"I take it he refused?" he asked.

"Hai shishou." Zetsu responded.

The orange haired nin then locked eyes with the snake summoner. "I hope you know the consequences of your decision."

"Forgive my ignorance, Leader-_sama_, but I fail to see how three Akatsuki members can do against a whole village." Orochimaru spoke, sarcasm present as he spoke his name.

"A weakling like you will never understand."

The Otokage glared with killing intent rolling off him in waves. "I hope you enjoy mocking me, for it will be the last time you do."

His eyes turned to Sasuke, then at Kabuto. "Kill them."

The Uchiha nodded and drew his katana, whilst Kabuto activated his chakra scalpels. Their actions were soon followed as the gathered Oto-nins drew their respective weapons, many of which consisted of kunais and shuriken. With a war cry, the shinobis leapt and charged at the three opposing nukenins.

Zetsu stood ready along with Tobi, but before they could engage they were stopped with a hand gesture from their leader.

"Shishou?"

"I will handle this." He spoke as his crimson eyes began to glow.

The oncoming wave of Oto-nins drew closer, and in less than a second, closed the gap between the two parties.

The Akatsuki leader smirked as a green aura surrounded his being.

"**Mokuton Hijutsu: Bijuu Chakrayose: Rokubi" **(Wood Release Secret Technique: Tailed Beast Chakra Summoning: Six Tails)

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_Kumo _

The Raikage shuffled through paperwork in his office before hastily pushing it aside in surrender. He sighed as he rubbed his temple, irritation was visible in his visage.

A few seconds later a knock interrupted his musings.

"Enter." He said in a tired voice.

The door to his office opened and a tall, black haired man in his late thirties dressed in a Jounin uniform entered.

"Good evening Sandaime-sama." The man bowed as he approached to the middle of the office.

"Ah Kazune-kun, what brings you here at this hour." The Sandaime spoke while continuing to massage his temple.

The younger man took a chair and sat opposite to the Raikage. "I heard that the council didn't take your idea of an alliance with Konoha very well."

The elder nin sighed. "Those senile fools still bear a grudge with the Leaf."

"I see, the Hyuuga incident." Kazune nodded knowingly. "It seem those idiots still can't accept the fact that the humiliation Kumo received was their own doing."

"Yes, and because of that, they're blinded on the more important things." The kage spoke as he locked eyes with the younger man.

"You mean Akatsuki?"

"Not just Akatsuki, Otogakure as well. The fact that Orochimaru leads that village disturbs me." The elder nin leaned against his chair and took a calming breath. "But enough about that. I'm sure you have another reason why you came."

"Perceptive as always, Nagi-sama." The brunette nin smiled before his expression turned serious. "I'm worried about Yugito, a lot of us are, council excluded of course. Akatsuki was able to infiltrate our village without our knowledge until the last minute. The next time they come for Yugito they might just succeed."

Nagi raised an eyebrow at the sudden statement but his expression soon returned to normal. "That is why I'm pushing for an alliance with the Leaf."

Kazune cast a confused look towards the Kage. "Come again?"

The Raikage pulled a cigarette from his cabinet and lit it before replying. "Do you know that Konoha has a Jinchuuriki as well?"

'_Jinchuuriki? The only bijuu that was in Fire country was…' _The younger nin's eyes widened. "K-Kyuubi?!"

"Yes, Konoha has within in its ranks the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki as we have the Nibi." Nagi paused and took a puff. "I have been told by a source that Konoha is the only village so far that Akatsuki has failed in acquiring a Jinchuuriki in the past, excluding us at the moment."

"So in acquiring an alliance with them we can increase the chances of Yugito's safety." Kazune nodded in understanding.

"That's what I'm hoping for." Nagi said as he took another puff. "Though at the moment it seems impossible."

"Yeah, well it's not like we can just walk to Konoha's gates and say 'Hi!', now can we." The brunette joked.

"Actually we could." The kage replied, causing the other nin to deadpan.

"What I said was a joke, Nagi-sama."

"No you fool! I know that was a joke!" The Kage snapped.

"I'm sorry, but I don't quite follow where your going with this, sir." The raven haired nin frowned.

Nagi calmed himself as he leaned down on his chair. "It's simple, there are other possibilities.

"Other possibilities?" his charge asked.

The Raikage opened one of his cabinets and pulled out a folder containing numerous forms. Opening the folder he skimmed through the contents before closing it and placing it on his desk. "Tell me Kazune-kun, non-aggression is a wonderful thing isn't it?"

The younger shinobi smiled as he got the underlying message. "It always is Nagi-sama, it always is."

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_Otokagure _

"N-noo….stay away!" a Chuunin shrieked as he dragged himself away from the approaching Akatsuki nin.

The Chuunin's retreat, however, was soon stopped as he found himself trapped in a corner. "Get away from me monster!!"

Zetsu stepped closer to the nin, giving him a hungry look as he eyed the Oto-nin's blood flowing from his wounds. "You look palatable."

The Grass nukenin slowly made his way to the Chuunin, playing with him as a beast does with its prey. The said Oto-nin shook in fear with tears streaking down his cheeks and his bladder ready to loose control. Zetsu soon stood in front of the man, his tall frame casting a shadow on his prey. The venus flytrap cocoon that encased his body opened showing pieces of flesh and blood from his previous killings.

"I do hope you taste better than your comrades."

--------------------------

Tobi quickly parried a strike before countering the Oto-nin with an impalement of three kunais in the said nin's heart. The opposing nin soon slumped to the ground with a small groan. The odd Akatsuki member was about to charge to another opponent before a loud yell reached his ears.

He looked to the location of the voice and found Zetsu's figure in a corner. Tobi slightly winced, he knew what his senpai was doing and truth be told, it disturbed him.

But before he can ponder any further, the orange masked shinobi was forced to duck a horizontal sword slice. Tobi then rolled away before standing at a ready stance with his attention to his newest enemy.

"Tch, your better than I thought." His opponent spoke as his Sharingan eye blazed.

"Ah! Sasuke-san! You really should take a break, wounds inflicted by Leader-sama heals slower than normal wounds do."

Sasuke quickly looked at his battered figure and the wounds received by the mysterious orange haired nin, but paid it no mind as he pointed his sword at the Akatsuki nin.

"You know, I don't think Itachi-san would be too happy if I killed his little brother." Tobi continued. His voice then became uncharacteristically serious. "Then again, you did disgrace your family name by siding with a snake. The 'Uchiha' name is nothing more than an accessory now."

The Uchiha growled at the mention of his brother and the masked nin's insult. Charging **Chidori Nagashi** around his figure, he rushed at the opposing Akatsuki nin with blinding speed. "You do not mock the name of Uchiha!"

"Yup, he's definitely nothing like his brother." Tobi sighed as he pulled out more kunais from his cloak. The kunais glowed before a sizzling sound emanated from them. With a quick motion, the metal projectiles flew to the raging Sharingan wielder.

Sasuke's doujutsu locked on to the kunais; he smirked as he continued his charge.

A loud and powerful explosion ensued, engulfing the surrounding area in dust and rubble. The orange masked shinobi stood still as debris flew past him, his eyes focused at the column of smoke in front of him, scanning for his opponent.

The sound of chirping birds made itself heard. Tobi looked to his left and found Sasuke hastily making his way towards him with lightning chakra focused on his right hand. The Uchiha's speed increased as he neared his enemy, whom was calmly eyeing the attack.

"Chidori!"

----------------------

Orochimaru was a person who wasn't easily intimidated, but the scene before him wasn't something he saw very often. His subordinates littered his throne room with their corpse and mangled flesh. Many of which where missing limbs and some where torn apart beyond recognition. His right hand man, Kabuto, was embedded in a nearby stone pillar, unconscious or dead, with numerous gashes that, despite the medic-nin's skill in healing, continued to bleed. The Sannin silently gulped as he laid eyes on the cause: the orange haired Akatsuki leader.

The said shinobi was standing a dozen of meters from him, vines and wooden branches wrapped around him while a dark indigo, nearing violet, lightning chakra visibly surged throughout his being.

The Sannin steeled his nerves as he locked eyes with the enigma. "What are you? A Jinchuuriki?"

The mysterious nin's crimson eyes flashed in anger. The bijuu chakra around him exploded momentarily, causing the snake summoner to unconsciously take a step back, before returning to their original state. "Do not compare me to those mere sacrifices."

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes. "Then what are you?!"

The questioned shinobi resumed silent as he stepped closer to the snake. The distance between the two soon reduced to than of a few meters. The Otokage drew out Kusanagi and pointed it defiantly at the cloaked man.

"Answer me!" he demanded with a hint of anxiety.

"I do not answer to a dead man walking." With that said, the Akatsuki leader extended his palm in Orochimaru's direction.

"Mokuton: Mokugadan."

Numerous wooden spikes erupted from the concrete floor and ceiling, all of which were pointed at the Sannin. The exposed wood glowed a green aura before each of them launched at the snake summoner. The wooden projectiles flew through the air at high speeds and neared their target in a blink of an eye, causing Orochimaru's eyes to widen.

Gripping Kusanagi's hilt tightly, he parried the first four missiles before barely dodging another five. The snake growled as one of the wooden objects lodged itself in his left shoulder, but paid it no mind.

The Sannin cursed as he sensed another flare of chakra. Turning his head to his opponent, he found another swarm making their approach.

Shifting to a stance, the snake nin sliced through three and deflected four more. Turning Kusanagi to its flat, blunt side, he sent the last two back to the orange haired nin at an even faster speed.

One of the wooden spikes flew past the orange haired man harmlessly, and as he tilted his head, so did the other projectile.

The snake Sannin gritted his teeth in fury. "You!"

The cloaked nin cast a look, silently showing that he had the snake's attention.

"That jutsu! That was Mokuton...how...how do you have that Kekkai Genkai?!" The snake nin exclaimed as he pointed the tip of Kusanagi at the questioned shinobi.

The crimson eyed Akatsuki stayed silent, much to Orochimaru's irritation. "If you won't answer then I'll make you! Sen'eitajashu!"

Multiple snakes shot forth from the Otokage's sleeves in an attempt to constrict the opposing shinobi. The reptiles' jaws snapped open showing their poison covered fangs. The Akatsuki leader dodged their strike, but Orochimaru continued with another assault.

Sidestepping to the right, the orange haired shinobi dodged the second attempt, but as he was about to dodge the snake's third, a force kept him from moving. The nin looked at his feet and found a large anaconda binding his legs.

"I have you now fool!" The Otokage bellowed as a multitude of snakes sprang from his sleeves for the fourth time. Though before the reptiles made contact, they were halted and held in place by vines covered in indigo chakra.

"Your tricks won't work on me." The leader sent a pulse of chakra, causing the vines to extend further and reach all the way back to Orochimaru, restricting the Otokage. "During your time in Akatsuki, I have studied you as I have all of the other members. I know your techniques well, and a counter for every one of them."

The snake Sannin tried to release himself from the hold, but it was in vain. Eyeing Kusanagi in his right hand, he was about to grab it with his tongue to free himself, but before he could make the slightest movement more vines appeared and covered his mouth.

"Don't even try it." The leader warned; his outstretched palm clenched to a fist, causing the remaining vines to impale the Sannin. Orochimaru's eyes widened, but that was the only reaction that showed.

"As I thought, your self-induced experiments gave you a high tolerance from all types of pain. But…" The Mokuton user sent a wave of bijuu chakra to the vines that skewed the Sannin's body. The extreme, invading foreign chakra caused the snake's eyes to widen further and his body to twitch violently. "…I bet you never experienced that type of pain before have you?"

Parts of Orochimaru's body began to smoke while other parts of his body started to swell.

"Your use has run out snake. It's time for you to die."

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Yes I'm leaving a cliffhanger, I know I'm evil. So if you want more, then review!! Even short messages would be nice.

**(Sen'eitajashu) **Hidden Shadow Many Snake Hands

**(Mokuton: Mokugadan) **Wood Release: Wood Fang Bullet

The button bellow is begging to be pressed.


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